Visit and Wine Tasting Sintra

Visit and wine tasting in Sintra with pick-up in Lisbon or at the hotel in a private van, we’ll drive you towards to Sintra village a UNESCO World Heritage since 1995, located 35 minutes from Lisbon. From here we continue a few more minutes to Colares cooperative winery.

There are documents proving the existence of vineyards in this region in the 12th century (Afonso Henriques, first Portugal king). Historians attribute the introduction of the ‘Ramisco’ variety to king Afonso III (13th century), who supposedly brought it from northern France (Boulogne) where he lived for some time.

Colares winery is a Cooperative, the oldest in Portugal created in 1931 and a Demarcated Region since 1908, second in the country to achieve this standard. However, there is a lot more details and process that make these wines so unique. To start, the uniqueness of the Ramisco (red) and Malvasia de Colares (white) grape variety, both rare and unique wines in the world but also the method of planting in sandy soils is unique in the world.

First stop will be in a nearby village to visit the unique vineyards on sand soil where the vines, some with more than 100 years, grow on sand soils with roots on clay soil several meters down, spreading the bunches over the sand ground with a muscular Atlantic influence, on the westernmost tip of Continental Europe!

In 1865, phylloxera entered the northern part of the country and decimated much of the European vineyards. In Colares, the grape varieties installed in sandy soil resisted this plague, that feature brought a large expansion of viticulture in this region.

Till today, Colares maintains all the genetic originality of European Vitis and its native varieties, as they do not need to use the American Vitis rootstock to control the pest. “Our sand vines are not grafted, so they are all “pé-franco”.

The visit at Colares cooperative winery it’s in a guided tour with the winemaker getting to know all history about these unique wines and the influence of the terroir, visiting the cellar ending by the shop for the tastings of a red Ramisco with more than 6 years aging in vats and oak reclaimed barrels and the white Malvasia de Colares with more than 1 year of aging in vats, with dry snacks.

After leaving the winery, we’ll get back to Lisbon but not without stopping close to Sintra village to try the local sweets Queijadas. Return to Lisbon.