Weekly story: Wine & Food in Portugal

When talking about Wine & Food Tourism Destinations, countries like France, Italy, Spain, USA, Australia are on people’s mind.
Therefore, it’s with some surprise that many tourists, after spending some time in Portugal, are completely amazed by the quality and diversity of  wines and food that they had the opportunity to try during their visit.

Portuguese always love to eat. In fact every weekend thousands of people are willing to travel until 200 Km from their homes only to have lunch at a certain restaurant that is famous for a special dish.

Portugal is a small country,  but you will be amazed to see how the food and wine culture changes so rapidly from region to region.

From the simple and fresh sea food and fish, to the more seasoned and elaborated game the options are plenty. Generally speaking you’ll find mostly   Mediterranean food culture at your table.

As for the wines, there has been recently a big buzz about the Portuguese wines. Diversity followed by quality are the most frequent words used to describe them.

To understand this diversity, both in wines and food, that you’ll find in Portugal you have to look to the geography and history. Only than you can fully understand it.

Sadly, most restaurants although have excellent  cuisine, lack considerable attention to the wine service. They have interesting wine list but, correct serving temperatures, adequate wine glasses, option on wine by glass and professional wine service have been deeply neglected by many  restaurants.

The good news is that restaurants are actually paying more attention to the importance of quality wine service.

One thing you can be sure off.  You will find excellent hospitality and the average cost for a meal in most wine regions will be quite affordable when compared to other more famous international destinations.

What can I recommend if you are planning to visit Portugal?

You can read  The Wine and Food Lover’s Guide to Portugal by Charles Metcalfe and Katheryn McWhirter or, you can trust our services in helping  you plan well run and interesting wine and food tours in Portugal.

Tell us your opinion about food and wine in Portugal or if you have never been to Portugal what is your perception about it?

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• Cabo da Roca – A Fish Lover’s Paradise (catavino.net)
• Exploring the Explorers of Portugal to Reveal the True Passion Behind Their Wines (wine-blog.org)
• Gourmet Portugal (Portugaldiary.com)