Vinho Verde - History

History

Both the Romans Seneca the Younger and Pliny made reference to vines in the area between the rivers Douro and Minho.

There is a record of a winery being donated to the Alpendurada convent in Marco de Canaveses in 870 AD, and the vineyards seem to have expanded over the following centuries, planted by religious orders and encouraged by tax breaks. Wines were mostly produced for domestic consumption, although Vinho Verde may have been exported in the 12th century, to England, Germany, and Flanders. The first definite exports to England are recorded by John Croft as taking place in 1788.

The arrival of maize in the 16th century left a distinctive stamp on viticulture in the region. To maximise production of maize, new regulations banished vines to the field margins, where they would be draped over trees and hedges, forcing the vignerons to pick them from tall ladders. Even today, vines are trained on tall trellises, although now that has more to do with reducing rot caused by the region's high rainfall (1500 mm on average). Another problem is that the rainfall encourages vegetative growth which shades the grapes.

The "Vinho Verde Region" was demarcated by the law of September 18, 1908 and a decree of October 1 of the same year. The regulations controlling production were largely set in 1929, with recognition as a Denominação de Origem Controlada (DOC) in 1984. The DOC is overseen by the Comissão de Viticultura da Região dos Vinhos Verdes ("Wine Commission of the Vinho Verde Region").

There are currently nearly 35,000 hectares of Vinho verde vineyards, making up 15% of the total in Portugal. There are 30,599 producers, down from 72,590 in 1981.