Set sail along the Douro River

With an estimated 1.2 billion members, the Roman Catholic Church is the world’s largest Christian institution. It has played a pivotal role in the history of Western civilization. For centuries, the Catholic Church was the repository of much of the Western world’s written knowledge. It continues to be the predominant religion in Portugal and Spain.

Branches, teachings and liturgy

While the Church teaches that its doctrine is unchanging and infallible, Catholicism does have several distinct branches, including monastic communities such as the Jesuits, Franciscans and Dominicans. The basic teachings are Trinitarian—one God made up of three divine persons: the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ) and the Holy Spirit. Catholic worship is strongly traditional and liturgical. It focuses on the Catholic Mass, during which the Eucharist is celebrated and received by baptized members of the Church.

Education and social action

Centering on the family unit, Catholic social teachings emphasize education and social action in the form of support for the poor and afflicted. There are many Catholic universities, schools, missions, shelters, hospitals and charitable institutions around the world.

The church in Spain and Portugal

By the Middle Ages, Catholicism was widespread in Iberia (Spain and Portugal), with many missions there. The Church played a significant role in the Reconquista, or “reconquest,” during which Muslims and Jews were either expelled or subsumed into the Church. Today, the influence of the Roman Catholic Church remains strong throughout the area. Approximately 81% of the Portuguese population is Roman Catholic, and 71% of Spaniards identify with Roman Catholicism.

Anyone who drank wine in the 1960s, ’70s or ‘80s probably enjoyed at least a glass or two of one of Portugal’s easy-drinking exports, Mateus Rosé. Created in 1942 during the height of World War II, Mateus founder Fernanco van Zeller Guedes combined Portuguese vinho verde grapes with French wine-making techniques to produce a rosé that was slightly bubbly, delicately sweet and pinkish in hue.

This popular wine was originally crafted to suit Brazilian tastes, as exports to Europe were disrupted by German U-boats in the Atlantic. The sparkling nature provided crossover appeal that captured beer and soda drinkers as well as wine enthusiasts. By the late 1980s, bolstered by the introduction of a white wine version, Mateus accounted for over 40 percent of Portugal’s table wine exports and achieved global sales of more than three million cases per year.

One of the hallmarks of Mateus, and undoubtedly a major contributor to its worldwide success, is its depiction of an opulent estate entitled “Palacio de Mateus” on its label. In truth, the building in question, which is located in Vila Real, has never played a material role in the wine’s production and is not technically a palace. According to Portuguese law, a building may be deemed a “palace” only if a member of the sovereignty has spent at least one night on its premises. The house was built during the first half of the 18th century by António José Botelho Mourão, and his descendants still live there today.

To legally use the estate’s likeness on Mateus labels, Guedes offered the owners a choice: they could receive either a small royalty on every bottle sold or a lump sum paid up front. Their decision to accept the latter option is widely considered one of the greatest mistakes in the history of both business and wine. According to Oz Clarke’s The History of Wine in 100 Bottles, it is “still not a subject to be brought up in conversation.”

The Mateus brand may not be as famous now as it was in its heyday, but it has enjoyed a revival since the turn of the millennium thanks to a relaunch and a subtle adjustment to the original recipe that made it slightly drier and therefore more appealing to modern palates. Despite the flavor changes, the wine is still sold in its distinctive narrow-necked, flask-shaped bottle—inspired by the water flasks traditionally worn on the hip by Portuguese soldiers during World War I—complete with the iconic Palacio de Mateus label and a real cork stopper.

The Museu do Douro (Douro Museum), located in the peaceful town of Régua, provides an insightful look into Portugal’s Douro wine region. Since its founding, the museum has earned praise for its commitment to preserving the Douro’s distinctive culture and heritage. Fittingly, it occupies the former headquarters of the General Company of Agriculture and Alto Douro Vines (1756–1863), the organization that established the Douro as the world’s first demarcated wine region.

The three-story building, reminiscent of a farmhouse and designed in the Pombaline architectural style, originally served many purposes. These included administrative and judicial functions, including developing and regulating the production and marketing of the region’s wine. Here, the company’s employees and winemakers who made the trek to Régua for its annual wine fair could also find lodging. Wine was even made and stored on-site.

Today, the first floor that was used for wine storage holds the museum’s permanent collection showcasing various artifacts, wine labels and artwork. Once reserved for meetings, wine exhibitions and court proceedings, the second floor contains a wine bar and restaurant in what was formerly a wine-tasting room and kitchen, respectively.

One of the major rivers of the Iberian Peninsula, the Douro gets its name from the ancient Celtic tribal word for water. It runs about 560 miles from its source in north-central Spain through Portugal, to its outlet at Porto on the Atlantic Ocean. The Douro is wild and meandering; only certain sections of it are navigable by small river vessels.

The picturesque Douro River Valley

Beautiful and unspoiled, the Douro River Valley is a productive microclimate for olives, almonds and grapes. Scenery along the river is picturesque, from terraced vineyards to quaint towns to traditional rabelo sailing boats carrying casks of port wine. The area around Pinhão is considered to be the cradle of port wine, with wine-producing quintas (farms) dotting the banks along the river.

Fauna, freshwater fish and electricity

The Douro River Valley’s hilly landscape and dry, warm climate are not only excellent for viticulture, but also for fauna that are unique to the area. The river itself is home to a wide variety of freshwater fish. The Douro is quite narrow in parts, and fluctuating water levels have historically limited river travel. But now there are five dams on the Portuguese section of the river, which not only help stabilize water levels, but also produce hydroelectric power. The dams have made it possible for river cruises through the Douro River Valley.

The next time you hear the satisfying pop of a cork leaving a bottle, remember that it was probably made in Portugal. Nearly half of the world’s cork production hails from this bountiful country, and cork alone accounts for a substantial share of Portugal’s total foreign income derived from trade. Its three primary consumer markets are the US, the UK and Germany, which together absorb about 70 percent of the total.

This remarkable material originates from the cork oak tree, which has developed its signature thick layer of bark over time as an adaptation to southwestern Europe’s long history of drought, bush fires and temperature fluctuations. This tree covers a significant portion of Portugal’s landscape and makes up more than a quarter of its forests. Cork is astonishingly lightweight, with 50 percent of its volume consisting of pure air. It is the only readily available solid on Earth that, when compressed on one side, does not increase in volume on the other. It is also elastic, waterproof, fire-retardant and abrasion resistant. However, its most noteworthy property is its renewability.

It takes about 25 years for a cork oak tree to be ready for harvesting. After that, the bark can be collected again every nine years. This is due to the fact that cork naturally regenerates, so one tree can produce a lifetime of harvests. Since some trees live up to 150 years, it is little wonder that cork plays such a vital role in Portugal’s economy.

Cork harvesting is a highly specialized craft. Two cork strippers work in tandem, carefully chopping and peeling the bark from the tree’s trunk. The process remains entirely manual, relying on a steel axe that harvesters use to measure the bark’s thickness, listening for the sound it produces. Due to the skill and precision involved, cork harvesting is the highest-earning sector of Portugal’s agricultural industry.

From fishing boats to floor tiles, durable cork has served many purposes over the centuries, even providing ship-building materials for the vessels used by Portuguese explorers during the Age of Discovery. Nevertheless, it was an Englishman, Robert Hooke, who discovered that cork provides the perfect seal for wine bottles—surely an idea worthy of a toast.