Wine’s New World: Porto’s WOW Factor

WOW has redeveloped a historic area of Porto by restoring warehouses once used to store port wine.

An amazing 300,000-square-foot development costing $124 million and taking five years to complete, Porto’s World of Wine (WOW) opened last summer. The new cultural hub is set to be a new cultural hub for tourists and locals with six interactive museums and nine restaurants, bars and cafes.

The WOW has regenerated a historic area that lay dormant for many years south of the Douro River, in warehouses that were once used to store port wine. Wine has an extensive history in Porto. The Douro Valley’s dry and arid climate made it easier for growers to ship their produce over 100 miles to Porto’s warehouses, which were more accommodating. As soon as temperature control became available, however, storing it so far away no longer made sense. As a result of the growers’ warehouse construction, Porto’s bustling wine district became silent.

It was considered an integral part of Porto’s cultural and architectural history, even though the warehouses were no longer functional. As different proposals came and went, the warehouses continued to fall into a state of disrepair. However, any attempt to redevelop the area required a great deal of restoration. In the WOW proposal, both regeneration and honor of history were promised at the same time.

“From the initial project, it kind of grew,” Adrian Bridge, the project’s CEO, explained. “Initially, it was just going to be about wine, and then it got relatively big because it is such a historic area. A lot of our work has been to bury anything that could be considered to degrade the visuals. We have vastly improved what was there. There were old warehouses with fiber cement rooms and stainless-steel tanks. All of that stuff has disappeared.”‍

Several workshops on Portuguese wine and gastronomy are offered by the WOW Wine School every day and over the course of a week. Visitors can learn not only about wine but chocolate, cork, fashion and the city. In addition to boasting an incredible view of the city, the central square will be home to a variety of restaurants, including Michelin-rated restaurants and locally inspired cheap eats.

Having overseen the construction of the luxury hotel The Yeatman, Bridge is extremely familiar with the local area. In 2010, this five-star hotel opened and has been regarded as the catalyst for Porto’s tourism boom. In the near future, there will be many exclusive experiences available at WOW.

“My experience of the HNW market is that people want things to be seamless,” Bridge explained. “We own The Yeatman and WOW, so we can ensure that quality of service from point to point. We can organize a VIP tour of an experience followed by a personalized, in-depth wine tasting. Like anything that is geared towards the HNW market, it is about accessibility to unique experiences. The fact that there is such a rich array of customizable experiences on The Yeatman’s doorstep is a strong appeal.”

Take a barrel bath with red wine extract after exploring WOW to improve blood flow and lymph circulation at The Yeatman’s spa after exploring the delights of WOW. Guests can enjoy a private tasting on the expansive terrace overlooking the WOW and Porto beyond the Presidential Suite.

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Take Two // Ports

Taylor’s Vargellas Vinha Velha 2017

Despite a particularly wet 2016 in 2017, the 2017 growing season was notable for its dryness. The crop ripened early, which led to picking starting on September 1, the earliest date since 1945. The rapturous reception for the 2017 shows it may follow in the footsteps of one of the greatest vintages of the 20th century.

In order to release a new 50-year-old limited edition every year, Taylor’s has access to one of the largest reserves of old cask aged port on the planet. This 1970 is the seventh in the series and is wonderfully elegant. It is aged in single oak casks in cool cellars, where conditions are ideal for the development of rich, complex flavors. You may enjoy this as soon as you buy it.