Pieces of Portugal – Part 21 – WOW Museum – Wine

The chocolate portion of the WOW Museum was fun, interesting and very well done Pieces of Portugal – Part 20 – WOW Museum – Chocolate, but the wine portion was even better! It covered everything from the different soils and terroir, to the grapes, the history of wine, and oh so much more. And, and the very end of the tour, there was a wine tasting featuring Douro Valley wines. 🙂

Wisteria and wine seem to like each other’s company and are often found growing together. This is the beautiful upper patio of the WOW Museum.

There is a cork museum too, but we did not get to go there. We ran out of time. The cork trees, or the cork oak trees (Quercus suber), are native to the Mediterranean Basin, specifically spanning Southwest Europe and Northwest Africa. Their natural range includes Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia. They thrive in this region’s temperate climate, forming oak woodlands, with the highest percentage being grown all throughout the Iberian Peninsula, in Portugal and Spain. These evergreen trees live 150–250 years, and their bark is harvested every 9–12 years without cutting down the tree.

And now, for the wine. No matter what your level of wine enthusiasm, if you like wines even a little, going to the WOW Wine Museum is a must. It was very well done and very informative on everything about the wine industry. It is also a hands-on interactive museum.

Larry is standing in the middle of a giant grape seed.

I am inspecting the grapes after harvest.

There was a little quiz you could take that would indicate what wines were best suited to you. Then there were fun, whimsical pictures on the walls matching the wines. We took pictures with “our” wine types.

And because we love our big dogs, and our Saint Bernards, we had to take this photo too. It reminded us of our beloved Saint, Lucie or Luzerne, who has been in puppy dog Heaven for about 6 years now.

An old fashioned wine press.

How the Portuguese wines were/are stored.

I have the perfect spot for this piece in my art niche, above my stairs.

Wine grapes are grown all over Portugal, and each region has their own unique style of wines they produce. Part of the museum was a representation of each region, their homes, and the style of dress of the wine makers. There were also maps of each region too. I won’t share all of the regional homes and displays. There are too many. Since we visited the central northern and southern regions of Portugal though, I will give you those regions here. This one is typical of the central wine regions of Portugal.

This is in the northern region. The winemakers actually still wear this brightly colored outfit for some of their wine ceremonies too.

And the southern coastal wine regions of Portugal.

Many of these wine making traditions are still in practice today too. The Portuguese winemakers have been making wines the same way for generations.

The nose, or nez, or nariz, is very important in the wine business. You taste with your nose long before you taste with your tongue.

We followed our noses to the wine tasting room.

I love this wine chart. It gives you the characteristics of different wines, and what to expect from each type.

When we bought our tickets, we also got a coupon for a port cocktail. We enjoyed our cocktails out on the beautiful sun drenched terrace with a view of Porto in the background.

We got a little chance to relax before moving on to our next adventure. This is a good place to stop for now. Have a great day and make everyday great. Live life to the fullest. It’s not the destination that matters, but the journey. Enjoy the ride. ‘Til next time.