Troubles in the Valley as over production of grapes strikes the port makers of Douro as sales of port continue to decline.
The Portuguese port industry is seeking government intervention to limit production and control prices.
A group of 26 leading producers published a full-page open letter in national newspapers condemning the lack of government reform, saying it “impacted not only the price of grapes but also the socio-economic sustainability of the farmers, the companies, and the future of the region’s wines in international markets”.
The letter added: “No wine region can survive such an imbalance for long, suffering damage to its reputation and to the economy of its communities. This incomprehensible inaction is damaging one of the most historic and beautiful wine regions in the world.”
The London Times quoted Paul Symington, the head of the Anglo-Portuguese port dynasty, saying century-old regulations are endangering the Douro Valley and its vineyards.
Describing it as a “hopelessly antiquated regulatory system”, Symington said that the Douro Valley was the only wine region in Portugal still run along lines established by the dictator António Salazar, who died in 1970. “The government has a diamond, a jewel in the world of wine, rich in history and tradition, and they’re endangering it.”
The regulatory system was designed almost exclusively for port but Douro red and white wines now account for almost half of the area’s grape production, the paper explained.
“This has given rise to numerous distortions,” said Symington. “For example, the quantity of grapes that can be made into port is adjusted annually depending on total stocks and demand – just like champagne. But Douro wine, from exactly the same vineyards and grapes, has no annual quota so these grapes are sold at market prices which are overwhelmingly below cost every year due to an excess supply of grapes.”
