Peso da Regua

Peso da Régua is the official centre of Port production in Portugal. The town lies in a peaceful spot beneath the Serra do Maoro Mountains and was traditionally the place where barrels of Port were loaded onto wooden cargo ships to be transported along the Douro to Vila Nova de Gaia. The stained-glass windows of the Casa do Douro depict the history and production of Port wine. There is also a fine map of the Douro Valley drawn in the mid-19th century by Baron Joseph Forrester, an enterprising Englishman who reformed the port trade after joining his uncle's wine company in Oporto.