On the Dão Road: A Guide to Wine Tourism in Portugal

Dão: a wine region with passionate stories, bold architecture, passionate people, creative cuisine, austere landscape, wines, and vineyards made for posterity. Dão is the oldest demarcated region for table wines in the country, founded in 1908, and throughout this century of history, it has been through a lot. But he didn't lose his joviality. And the identity, this is increasingly established, in elegant and full-bodied reds, complex and delicate whites, and the eyes of producers fixed on the horizon of longevity.

Wine tourism, for its part, is now taking its first firm steps. There is still no structured offer from regions such as Douro and Alentejo. But the scenery itself is different and with its peculiarities – if in these regions the landscape is generous and practically sells tourism, in Dão it asks for attention, asks you to look with eyes to see, hidden among patches of pinewood, behind walls, divided into the old logic of small extensions of vines.

Located in central Portugal, in the province of Beira Alta, the Demarcated Region of Dão was established in 1908, becoming one of the first demarcated regions for non-liqueur wines in the Iberian Peninsula. Due to the quality of its wines, the Dão region is known as the Portuguese Burgundy.

The wines produced in Dão are gastronomic, with exceptional acidity, bringing complex and delicate aromas. This character of complexity, elegance, maturity, and balance, with excellent ripening potential, in a noble and harmonious way, created the perfect combination with the local gastronomy, attracting the attention of wine connoisseurs from all over the world.

The Dão Demarcated Region is characterized by a rugged relief, with predominantly granitic soil and a terroir and climate conducive to the production of good grapes, mainly due to its wide temperature range.

Casa da Ínsua

Penalva do Castelo is 25 kilometers from Viseu, in the Beira Alta sub-region. Among the local producers, Casa da Ínsua occupies the place of honor, as it adds to the historic charm hotel (35 rooms, lounges, restaurants, shop, and gardens in the French and English style) property with a museum, vineyards, a flock of embroidered sheep. , cheese factory and the entire agricultural area in full swing — in addition to wine, they produce Serra da Estrela PDO cheese, olive oil, and jams. The guests of this wine tourism house are given the opportunity, among other activities, of harvesting with the right to loofah in the middle of the morning, lunch, and treading on foot.

Madre de Água Restaurant

The Restaurant of Quinta e Hotel Rural Madre de Água offers high-quality cuisine. The Restaurant of the estate creates a close relationship between the finest local meat producers and meat sausages with what is in the garden and orchards of the Quinta.

Quinta and Rural Hotel Madre de Água (Quinta e Hotel Rural Madre de Água)

The Quinta and Hotel are set in 60 hectares consisting of the vineyard, olive grove, orchard, forest, organic garden, and fields of red fruits. The construction of a cheese dairy, winery, and cellar is part of the project in the short term. Although the wines are recent, some are already holders of the Awards Committee of Dão Wine. The microclimate where the estate is located, potency in the atmosphere and soil the ability to obtain agricultural products, and the Bordaleira Serra da Estrela sheep cheese with a unique terroir where the mountain and sub-region of Dão are blended.