Wine, the Vine and the Cellar (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER II. POET?OPORTO?UPPER DOURO, ETC. The Foz?The Douro?Vigo?Minho?Oporto?Alto Douro Company ?Baron Forrester?To make Port?Wine Tasters?Elderberries? Jeropiga?Rise in Prices?The Future of Port?Rates of Duty since 1671?Methuen Treaty?White Port?Lisbons?Tom's Coffee House?Lyne Stephens?Letter from Lisbon, 1798 ? The Port Trade Artificial ? Difficulty of giving just Views?Head of the Wine Trade?Bottle-stink?Dining Hours?Horse Shoe?Gronow's Reminiscences?The Cheeryble Brothers?Old Port in Lancashire? Monopoly?Alto Douro Company's Tasters?Old and Present Prices ?Few Shippers formerly?Crusts?Racking and Fining?Mr. Bal- lantyne's Letter?Mr. Gassiot's Description?Estimates of Cost? Rua Ingleza?Prison of Oporto?Siege?To Fight and be Fighted ?Steamer Signalled?Man and Wife?Escape?Consumption and Percentage since 1831?Statisties. OPORTO may be reached by landing from the steamer, which stops, when the weather permits, opposite the fort, or Foz. The powerful mail-boat, with a crew of twenty men, crossing the dangerous bar at the mouth of the Douro, is a fine sight; and the walk to the town along the high banks of the river is very beautiful. On my second visit, in 1844,1 disembarked there; but I would advise every lover of scenery to leave the steamer at Vigo and ride to Oporto. From the hill on the brow of which Vigo is built the view is very extensive and splendid, and so it continues the whole way, with the sea beating against the rocks on the right; while the varying prospects of valley and mountain, luxuriant foliage and fields, never fail to delight the eye. I have seen many lands, but I recollect none which equal in beauty the great valley of the Entre-Minho- e-Douro; especially when coming upon the Eiver Miiiho, that separates Spain from Portugal. On arriving ...