The Spanish and Portuguese wine regions located on the banks of the River Duero – Douro, in Portuguese – are currently participating in a joint project unprecedented in Europe: the launching of the International Wine Route of Vinduero-Vindouro.
More than 50 municipalities with a long tradition in producing top-quality wines in the Spanish provinces of Salamanca and Zamora, as well as in the Portuguese provinces of Douro and Tras os Montes, have joined forces to collaborate in a unique project revolving around the wine culture and the River Duero.
This cross-border initiative, which covers an area of 35,000 km2, combines all the environmental, tourist, cultural, economic, heritage and gastronomic resources existing on both sides of the frontier in one project.
The breathtakingly beautiful natural parks of Arribes del Duero in Spain, and the Douro International Nature Reserve in Portugal, provide an incomparable setting for the Vinduero-Vindouro International Wine Route, which offers visitors countless activities and itineraries with gastronomy and wine as the common denominator.
The route is based on four itineraries named after the varieties of grapes predominant in the area – Malvasia, Bruñal, Touriga Nacional, and Juan Garcia – which run through counties that still retain charming vineyards carpeting steep hillsides, next to picturesque villages and hamlets. Nearly two hundred wineries and companies operating in the tourist and agri-food industries are already participating in the initiative, and more are expected to join in the near future.
Among the most outstanding wineries included in this new route are Arribes del Duero in Corporario-Aldeadavila de la Ribera, Ribera de Pelazas and Las Gavias, both in Pereña de la Ribera, Bodegas Durius in Fermoselle, Sogrape located in Bemposta, and Adega Coop. de Freixo Espada a Cinta in Freixo Espada a Cinta.
In addition to restaurants, hotels and country lodgings, this international route offers visitors a broad range of leisure activities, from relaxing stays at spas to environmental cruises on the River Douro, from tours of traditional cheese factories and oil mills to visits to the wine museum at Torre de Moncorvo or the Traditional Building Theme Park at Trabanca.
The idea came about a year and a half ago, and although a number of actions are already underway, there are others yet to be implemented and for which EU funding is expected. These include the VID Centre (Wine, Innovation and Development) in Trabanca, whose aim will be to research into innovative ways of improving wine quality, and the creation of a wine tourism school for training professionals, offering a master programme in wine tourism that is currently being designed in collaboration with the universities of Salamanca, Tras os Montes and Alto Douro.
