Winery sights in Europe
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Ramos Pinto
Right on the riverfront you can visit the rather grand Ramos Pinto, including a look at its historic offices and ageing cellars.
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Vila Nova de Gaia
While technically its own municipality, Vila Nova de Gaia ('Gaia') sits just across the Douro from Porto and is woven into the city's fabric both by a series of stunning bridges as well as its shared history of port-wine making. Since the mid-18th century, port-wine bottlers and exporters have been obliged to maintain their 'lodges' - basically dressed-up warehouses - here.
Today some 60 of them clamber up the steep riverbank, and at night the entire scene turns into Portugal's version of Las Vegas, with huge neon signs clamouring for the attention of winos and oenophiles alike. This enclave of historic terracotta-topped warehouses is now Porto's best-known attraction, de…
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Hajós
The village of Hajós, 21km southwest of Kalocsa, is - or should be - a magnet for wine lovers. Around 1300 wine cellars (Europe's largest concentration) are squashed into its winding streets and alleys, creating seemingly endless rows of sharply-pointed pincék (cellars). Centuries ago, a healthy Swabian population settled the region and began fermenting and storing wine; the conditions were seemingly perfect for such activities and the result is what you see today.
Full-bodied reds are the mainstay of wine production in the area, and the best odds for tastings are over the summer, when most visitors are expected. Hajós can be reached by four daily buses from Kalocsa.
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Arnaldo Caprai
Next to Torgiano's Lungarotti, the second most famous winery in Umbria is Arnaldo Caprai, the wine-makers who single-handedly brought the now-famous DOCG Sagrantino back from obscurity. The Caprai winery has just built a beautiful new tasting room and is one of the few vintners in Umbria open to the public on a regular basis. Plus, if you love the wine (we suggest the white fruity Greccheto and the earthy Sagrantino), you're in luck; Caprai is one of the largest Umbrian wine exporters and distributes their goods in about two dozen countries, from Australia to Brazil and Korea to the US. To reach the winery, follow the signs on the road towards Bevagna to Località Torre or…
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St Martin's Winery
Remich is the centre of Luxembourg's wine industry and the main cave or winery is St Martin. Producing white and sparkling wines, the latter known as crémant, St Martin's offers interesting tours which delve into the méthode traditionelle used to process their sparkling wines.
This process, like champagne production, traditionally involved turning each bottle by hand. Guides at St Martin are adamant that this age-old process is still carried out, though some in the industry claim all the large caves now use machines to turn the bottles. The tour winds through cool, damp tunnels hewn in the rockface and ends with a free glass of bubbly.
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Mitko Manolev Winery
For the most atmospheric adventure in degustatsia (wine tasting), clamber up the hillside to the Mitko Manolev Winery. Also known as Mitko Sheshtaka ('the Six-Fingered') it's basically a cellar dug into the rocks, and an informal hut with tables and chairs outside, for sampling (and buying) both red and white wine. It's along the hillside trail between the Bolyaskata Kâshta ruins and the Kordopulov House.
There are certainly worse things than whiling away the hours in the sunshine with a glass of Melnik red, and the views of the town and cliffs from up here are wonderful as well.
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Vinag Wine Cellars
This square east of Maribor Castle, along with leafy Trg Generala Maistra and Rakušev trg to the north, would be unremarkable except for the honeycomb of Vinag Wine Cellars below that cover an area of 20,000 sq metres and can store seven million litres of plonk. The cellars, dating from the early 19th century, are managed by the wine export company Vinag.
They are filled with old oak barrels, steel fermentation tanks and an 'archive' of vintage wine - all kept at a constant 15°C. There's a small cellar open to the public.
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Old Vine
About 150m east along the Pristan embankment is Maribor's most celebrated attraction, the so-called Old Vine, which is still producing between 35kg and 55kg of grapes and about 25L of red wine per year after being planted more than four centuries ago. It is tended by a city-appointed viticulturist, and the dark red Žametna Črnina (Black Velvet) is distributed to visiting dignitaries as 'keys' to Maribor in the form of 0.25L bottles designed by the celebrated Slovenian artist Oskar Kogoj.
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Adega Regional de Colares
En route to Praia Grande and Praia das Maçãs, ridgetop Colares makes a great pit stop with its panoramas, stuck-in-time village charm and wines dating back to the 13th century. The vines grown today are the only ones in Europe to have survived the 19th-century phylloxera plague, saved by their deep roots and sandy soil. Call in advance to arrange a visit to Adega Regional de Colares to taste some of its velvety reds.
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Dourakis winery
Wine buffs will enjoy a stop at the Dourakis winery near the Alikambos turn-off on the road to Hora Sfakion. Winemaker Andreas Dourakis is happy to show visitors around the stone-built winery and there is a pleasant tasting room upstairs where you can sample some of his 17 excellent wines, including an organic red and his well-known Logari label. Dourakis produces more than 180,000 bottles a year using local and foreign varietals.
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Hildurs Urterarium
Around 400 types of herb, 100 varieties of rose and 1000 species of cactus flourish at Hildurs Urterarium. At Tilrem, about 6km north of Brønnøysund, it also produces its own wine. There are some rustic old farm buildings, a small art gallery and the shop carries locally grown products. The garden also makes a lovely spot for a lunch stop; dishes seasoned with locally grown herbs, of course.
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Cricova
Cricova is the Grand Duke of Moldovan wineries. Its underground wine kingdom is one of Europe's biggest, with 120km (74mi) of labyrinthine roadways, 60 of which are used for wine storage. Up to 100m (328ft) under ground, the 'cellars' hold 1.25 million bottles of rare wine. You must be in private transport and have advance reservations to get into Cricova.
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Valamo Orthodox Monastery
The Valamo monastery, Finland's only Orthodox monastery, is a hidden gem. The original monastery was annexed by the Red Army during WWII; the latest church was consecrated in 1977. Like all good monks, the clergy at Valamo produce their own wine (which visitors can buy) using crowberries, raspberries, strawberries and blackcurrants.
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Cantina del Redi
In the Renaissance Palazzo Ricci is Cantina del Redi, a cavernous warren of ancient wine cellars that you can wander through, ending up at the wine-tasting room and shop. To get there ascend the hill at Piazza Michelozzo and turn right at the Loggia di Mercato, first left into Via del Poggiolo, then left again into Via Ricci.
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Palazzo Ricci
Ascend the hill at Piazza Michelozzo and turn right at the Loggia di Mercato, first left into Via del Poggiolo, then left again into Via Ricci. In the Renaissance Palazzo Ricci is Cantina del Redi, a cavernous warren of ancient wine cellars that you can wander through, ending up at the wine-tasting room and shop.
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Giró Ribot
The magnificent winemaker’s farm buildings ooze centuries of tradition. These vintners use mostly local grape varieties to produce a limited range of fine cava and wines (including muscat). The times given are for the shop. To visit the cellars, call ahead.
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Taylor’s
Up from the river, British-run Taylor’s boasts lovely, oh-so-English grounds with fine views of Porto. Its tours are free and even include a tasting of one top-of-the-range (late-bottled vintage) wine – your reward for the short huff uphill.
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Vinag
The wine cellars in trg Svobode, dating from the early 19th century, are managed by the wine export company Vinag. The wine shop here has a large selection of local vintages, including Mariborčan, Laški Rizling, Chardonnay, Traminer and Gold Muscatel.
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Orkney Wine Company
The Orkney Wine Company produces handmade wines made from berries, flowers and vegetables, all naturally fermented. Get stuck into some strawberry-rhubarb wine or carrot-and-malt-whisky liqueur – unusual flavours but surprisingly addictive.
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Sugar Loaf Vineyards
On the western edge of town are the Sugar Loaf Vineyards, established in 1992 and producing around 12,000 bottles a year of award-winning Welsh wine. You can take a self-guided tour before sampling the goods at the café and gift shop.
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Jean León
Born in Santander as Ceferino Carrión in 1928, Jean León uses cabernet sauvignon and other grape types imported from prestigious vineyards in France to create a unique name in wines. Visits must be booked in advance.
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Staatlicher Hofkeller Würzburg
Atmospherically housed in the cellar of the Residenz is a winery owned and run by the Bavarian government, Staatlicher Hofkeller Würzburg. It produces some exceptional wines; tours conclude with a tasting.
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Weingut Der Stadt Krems
Weingut der Stadt Krems is the city-owned vineyard, yielding 200,000 bottles per year (90% is Grüner Veltliner and Riesling), some of which you can sample free and buy.
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Barros
Barros is well worth seeking out, with some of the town’s oldest surviving cellars and a more in-depth look at the process of making the wine itself.
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Nadal
Nadal is just outside the hamlet of El Pla del Penedès. The centrepiece is a fine masia (Catalan country farmhouse) where you can join organised visits.
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