Definition: barco rabelo

Until 1986, all port wine intended for export had to be taken to the shippers' warehouses in Villa Nova de Gaia. Producers established their ageing cellars there because the climate is cooler and very humid. It rains as much as it does in Birmingham. The clay soil of the cellars allows moisture to penetrate easily. These special conditions are ideal for ageing certain ports for up to forty years or more. Compared to the climate in the quintas, the cellars in Villa Nova de Gaia allow for significant savings in evaporation losses (approx. 2% per year), which is considerable when you consider the enormous stocks stored in these cellars.Today, the barcos rabelos are no longer used for anything other than as a tourist attraction and advertising medium. Each major port house (58 companies belonging to 13 groups) has a boat with its name written on the sail. Once a year, these boats take part in a regatta (S. João festival) which attracts crowds to the banks of the Douro. Since 1960, when the Douro was dammed, port has been transported in a more prosaic manner by tanker lorries.