City trip to Porto: old wine in new city – trip

Adrian Bridge is sitting in the café under a parasol. Children climb over mini boulders; her parents take selfies with the view of Porto’s old town. There is an ice cream seller next to the main entrance to the museums. “There is something for every taste, so that you can spend the whole day here as a family,” says Adrian Bridge of his “World of Wine”, which opened in July 2020.

The tall 57-year-old in a tailor-made suit is the source of ideas, founder and head of the World of Wine with seven museums, diverse dining facilities and shops. It is probably one of the largest European tourism projects in recent years, for which the Englishman had five and a half hectares of wine cellar converted here on the southern bank of the Douro, in Porto’s historic wine district, Vila Nova de Gaia. 105 million euros were invested in a five-year construction period; half of the money comes from EU funds for urban development.

The port wine barrels were once stored in Vila Nova de Gaia until the vintages were completed; from here the port was shipped all over the world. But now more and more wineries on the Douro are producing their wines locally.

“There were a few old warehouses and trees on the steep slope. There was a field where they sometimes played sports and the bishop’s vegetable garden,” remembers Adrian Bridge, who joined his wife’s family business, the port wine house, in the 1990s Taylor’s. At the turn of the millennium he founded the Fladgate Partnership, which unites various port wine brands, hotels and restaurants.

Acquisitions gave Fladgate extensive real estate in Vila Nova de Gaia. Bridge initially had the five-star hotel “The Yeatman” built on the site. Here the outdoor pool is shaped like a wine carafe and grape cosmetics are used in the spa.

Up until now there were hardly any museums in Porto. Now there are seven new ones in one fell swoop

The next major project the former investment banker tackled below the “Yeatman” was the World of Wine with its museums. “The country’s most important museums are in Lisbon,” the entrepreneur says. “Porto as a bishopric has not developed a special museum tradition, especially since there are hardly any castles and palaces that can be used for exhibitions.”

The concept of the WOW comes from Adrian Bridge. The multinational architecture firm Broadway Malyan translated its ideas into a straightforward, modern design language that carefully blends in with its surroundings. The central plaza also acts as a picture frame for the spectacular panoramic view over the river and the striking steel arch bridge to Porto’s old town hills. The white monastery “Serra do Pilar” with its round church towers above everything.

Open detailed view

The respect for the historical surroundings can be seen down to the last detail. The stairs to the plaza are decorated with azulejos, the typical, patterned tiles. Elsewhere, in a basement corridor, there are still the narrow rails on which the lorries loaded with barrels once rolled to the port.

The Museum of Fashion and Textiles is located in a historic house from the 18th century. It is difficult to see where the WOW site ends and where the neighboring wineries begin. The typically elongated wine cellar houses blend into a harmonious landscape of red tile roofs on the slope. Initial fears that the WOW would endanger Porto’s World Heritage status because of its sheer dimensions have been dispelled.

Open detailed view

The “Wine Experience” exhibition is about Portugal’s wine regions, grape varieties and production methods. You can step into a wine barrel here or smell the scent notes on the test tube. The cultivation areas are shown in typical local houses. Slate predominates in the Douro Valley. The native variety Touriga Nacional grows here. It is used for port wine production, but also produces dark, tannin-rich red wines.

The freshly acquired wine expertise can be used immediately in the restaurants on the WOW site. Whether vegetarian, specialized in fish or traditional Portuguese cuisine – there is also a selected wine list everywhere. The dry White Port, which is drunk chilled, is popular as an aperitif here in northern Portugal.

If you want to deepen your oenological knowledge, you can visit the WOW wine school. In the Level 1 course, grapes are crushed in a flask and fermentation is experienced using a miniature wooden barrel. The more advanced can taste the differences between Ruby and Tawny Port wines.

Open detailed view

Since Porto became the cultural capital in 2001 and the opening game of the European Football Championship was played here three years later, the number of visitors to the city has risen continuously. Three million tourists came to Portugal’s second largest city with a population of 200,000 in 2019. That had and has its downsides.

Tourism brought in the money with which historical buildings could be renovated and created numerous jobs; the World of Wine alone employs around 350 people. At the same time, however, many apartments became vacation homes.

Ricardo Valente, Porto’s City Councilor for Economy and Tourism, is pleased that tourist numbers have picked up again after the lockdowns. But he also speaks of a “pressure because three quarters of the visitors do not leave the old town of Porto.”

This is where the World of Wine comes into play. You can help to distribute the tourists better over the city, says Valente. A third of the Porto visitors should visit the WOW in the future, that is the goal. The museum quarter is designed for five thousand daily visitors.

Open detailed view

Another museum is dedicated to cork. Here you learn that it takes 25 years before a cork oak can be harvested for the first time. Stacks of bark, a punching machine and large-format videos illustrate how the bottle cork is made.

WOW founder Adrian Bridge has made his private collection of historical drinking vessels available for the World of Wine. More than 1,800 cups, glasses and goblets are gathered in it. The oldest exhibits, Egyptian clay bowls as grave goods, are nine thousand years old. “The entire history of mankind can be told based on the rituals surrounding drinking,” says Bridge, who personally guides through the collection. Bohemian and Venetian glass glitter in the showcases. Golden jugs testify to the unimaginable wealth of the Rothschilds; A service made of uranium glass shimmers bright green.

Tourism makes everything more expensive for the locals

But what do the locals think of the chic, new museum quarter? Ricardo Caetano, who works as a tour guide and chauffeur, is torn when it comes to changing his hometown. “I make my living from tourism,” he says. “But we also have to consider the consequences for the residents. Everything is just getting more expensive. We even have to pay admission to the churches. And there are no affordable apartments in all of Porto.”

Caetano assumes that the WOW will relieve the old town when cruise tourism picks up speed again. “The WOW is ideal for cruise guests who only spend a few hours in the city anyway,” he says. “You can enjoy the beautiful view here and learn something about Porto in the museums.”

The tour guide, who lives in Vila Nova de Gaia, thinks that Porto’s historic wine district has become more attractive in recent years. “There used to be only the wine cellars here. The tourists stayed down by the river. Now we also have a few restaurants and shops, bike paths and nicer green spaces.” The only downer: “Admission to the museums is very expensive for locals,” says Caetano. “Now everyone comes here because it’s something new. But many of them just stay on the terrace.”

Caetano has not yet visited the WOW’s newest museum. At the end of July, the “Pink Palace” was opened, where everything revolves around rosé wine. Colorfully designed rooms provide information about growing regions and production techniques – in a form that meets the needs of the Instagram generation.

But above all, it’s about the glamorous lifestyle that rosé wine symbolizes. Visitors can have their photos taken in a convertible in front of a palm tree backdrop or jump into a pool full of pink rubber balls. Five rosy drinks are tasted on the way. It ends with a fruity rosé port that Adrian Bridge created himself a few years ago. “The World of Wine also gives people a taste for whom Port was previously only known as a dusty bottle from grandmother’s living room cabinet,” says the company boss.

Travel information

Accommodation: The “Infante Sagres” with its magnificent wood paneling, chandeliers and stained glass is one of the oldest luxury hotels in Portugal, double rooms with breakfast from 180 euros, infantesagres.com. The newly renovated “Hotel Spot Family Suites” is located in the historic Bolhao shopping district, not far from the old market hall. The brightly furnished rooms on the upper floor have spacious terraces. Double room with breakfast from 80 euros, spotfamilysuites.pt

World of Wine: Combined ticket for two museums: 28 euros; Family ticket (2 adults, 2 children) 59 euros, wow.pt

Further information: visitporto.travel