The historic Taylor's Port Lodge in Vila Nova de Gaia, Porto (Oporto) should top most wine lovers list. While in Portugal, in addition to visiting the Douro Valley, we took time to explore port lodges. Port lodges in Porto number over 50. During our brief visit we were able to visit a few of these port lodges. Our first stop was at the historic Taylor's Port Lodge at the top of the Gaia hillside overlooking Porto. It was a beautiful Saturday in October when we visited Taylor's. The view was absolutely majestic.
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| Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
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| Entrance to Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
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| Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood
When we arrived at Taylor's, one of the oldest founding Port houses, we bought tickets that included a tour and
a basic tasting.
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| Port Tasting, Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
The basic Port tasting at Taylor's Port Lodge included:
2) 2005 LB Vintage Port and
3) 10 year-old Tawny Port.
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| Tasting Taylor's Dry Chip White, 2005 LB Vintage, 10 Year-old Tawny Ports © Spaswinefood |
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| Taylor's Dry Chip White, 2005 LB Vintage and 10 Year-old Tawny Ports © Spaswinefood |
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| Taylor's Dry Chip White, 2005 LB Vintage and 10 Year-old Tawny Ports © Spaswinefood |
In addition to the tasting and a tour we
selected to do what they described as a Special Tasting. The Special Tasting
included:
1) 10 year-old Tawny Port,
2) 20 year-old Tawny Port,
3) 30 year-old Tawny Port and
4) 40 year-old Tawny Port.
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Tawny Ports, Taylor's Port Lodge, Oporto © Spaswinefood
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| Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
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| Tawny Port Time, Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
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| Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
Now for some very basic tasting notes: I would describe the 10 and 20 year-old ports
overall as quite nice. However, I noticed a marked difference in the taste
of the 10 year-old port and 20 year-old port, versus the 30 and 40 year-old ports. Also, a further
difference between the 30 and 40 year old ports. I must confess I immediately developed a preference for well-aged ports. I just hope that my budget can match my taste.
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| Barão Fladgate portrait at Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
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| Tasting Port History, Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
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| Tasting port history at Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
Tasting Port at Taylor's is not to be missed. There is plenty of
history here if you chose to explore it. For reviews see
Tripadvisor.
After the Port wine tasting we ate lunch at the Barão Fladgate Restaurant. If you are planning to dine at the restaurant during your visit do not forget to make a reservation in advance.
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| Entrance to the Barão Fladgate Restaurant, adjoining Taylor's Port Lodge © Spaswinefood |
Across the street from Taylor's Port Lodge you will also find the Yeatman Hotel.
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| View of the Yeatman Hotel from the restaurant patio © Spaswinefood |
After lunch we walked down the hill towards the Douro River waterfront. One of other lodges that we saw included Sandeman's Port Lodge. We were well acquainted with the Sandeman symbol because we had tasted port at Sandeman's Quinta do Seixo a few days earlier in the Duoro Valley.
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Sandeman Port Lodge, Oporto © Spaswinefood
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It was an amazing trip to Portugal to see first hand the port lodges and visit the Douro Valley. Our visit to Taylor's was another great opportunity for us to continue to taste and learn about Port (see Jason Bandt Lewis article for an overview of Port wines). Fall is a perfect time to visit port lodges in Porto
, after most of the summer tourists have gone. During a fall visit you will see the leaves changing colors. If you time your visit for harvest time it is also a great time to check out the grape harvest in the Douro Valley. We were also told that spring is another great time to visit as well. While in Portugal Spaswinefood enjoyed tasting and learning about all things port. I
invite you to join me in my travels in Portugal and elsewhere in search of the best in Spaswinefood.
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