It is that time of the year again as our team of managers and support managers head off to on another trip to thank them for their efforts in a record-breaking year.
We were heading out to Porto for two nights and three days, experiencing wine and port in and around the Douro Valley, Porto and Vila Nova De Gaia. On day one we arrived safely in Porto on time and headed straight out to Vila Nova Vineyards. We sell some Vila Nova wines in our pubs including a great Alvarinho, so it was great to visit where the wine is produced. We were all staying in separate three-bedroom cottages in the grounds of the Vineyards. A storm was brewing, and the weather initially was wet and windy but we were indoors where we enjoyed the wines and a wonderful lunch in the Vila Nova estate house. Bonardo was our host and what a great host he was! We had chance to relax in our accommodation in the late afternoon having got up early that morning and then feeling refreshed we enjoyed a great traditional Portuguese meal at a local restaurant.
As we arrived back to our rooms the wind was getting up and through the night the storm was so bad it took out all the power, which in turn took out all the water, as it was on an electrical pump! Trees were uprooted and our visit to the Douro Valley Vineyards was aborted because Bonardo and his team had to deal with the ‘fallout’ from the storm. It was like an episode of ‘Survivor’ as the team sent out Adam our host to the local supermarket and boiled bottled water to wash and make tea and coffee. Just as everyone had boiled the water the power thankfully came on and everyone managed to freshen up. We travelled out to the Douro Valley anyway and had a great lunch on the river before making our way to the luxury of our hotel in Porto. The team recovered enough to enjoy a great night out, some dancing in to the ‘wee hours’!
Next morning coffee and custard tarts were the hangover cure before we then drove out to Graham’s Lodge over the Douro River from Porto to Vila Nova de Gaia. We were guests of Anthony Symington who is a fifth-generation member of the famous Symington Family who own the Graham’s, Dows, Warres and Cockburns Port houses as well as many Quintas along the Douro Valley where the grapes are grown and harvested before being brought to the port houses or lodges opposite Porto for port making and aging. We enjoyed an exceptional tour and tasting at Graham’s Lodge and then joined Anthony, as his guests, for lunch in the highly acclaimed restaurant at Graham’s Lodge. It was a great afternoon and a perfect farewell to a very memorable trip once again to this beautiful part of Europe. Well done to all the team for all their hard work this year. It was a great trip, educational too and richly deserved.
