Caves Cálem

We decided to try a Port wine tasting in Cálem because we liked the idea of a guided tour, a museum visit, and having the option to choose different glasses of wine — some people tried two, others three, and different varieties were available. Even though we’re not really wine or alcohol enthusiasts, we really enjoyed the whole experience, it ended up being one of the highlights of our trip. If you’re in Porto, tasting Port wine in Vila Nova de Gaia is, in our opinion, almost a must!😊 At the start, we had about 15 minutes to explore the museum. Personally, I would have loved a bit more time there (it was the only minor downside). After that, our guide explained everything about Port wine in a very interesting and engaging way. Finally came the tasting itself, in a pleasant setting where you could take as much time as you wanted. Overall, a wonderful experience, and we highly recommend it!

A well-organized tour that gives a solid introduction to the history of port wine and its production. The guide was friendly and easy to listen to, which made the experience even more enjoyable. At the end of the tour, there is a choice of tasting sets, so you can sample different styles of port. There is also a large shop with the full range of the producer’s wines, which is convenient if you want to buy something after the tasting. A good option if you want a clear and straightforward introduction to port wine without the hassle of searching for smaller, less accessible producers. Definitely recommended for a first experience.

Very cool experience, the wine tasting at the end is a nice way to end the tour. Our guide was very knowledgeable but most things are read from a screen which is something you could do on a self-guided tour.

Absolutely amazing experience! Would highly recommend! Purchased as part of the hop on hop off Porto bus package! The experience guide at the caves was amazing! Lots of brilliant information delivered with a humorous style - she was fab! The ports were of course fantastic also. On exiting though the shop you don’t feel ‘ripped off’ by extortionate prices - quality all around. We will revisit!

Great tour and a perfect start to knowing the port wine. The tour guide is so precise and kind throughout the whole tour. The wine taste part is as good as the tour, three different type of wine fully immerse you into the world of Porto Wine.

Wonderful Tour With Great Insights We thoroughly enjoyed our visit — our guide was knowledgeable, welcoming, and made every stage of the tour genuinely engaging. Walking through the ageing port cellars was a real highlight, complete with the sights (and smells!) of history in the making. We opted for the exclusive tasting, which offered three varieties of port served in generous measures and felt well worth the upgrade. The on-site shop was also nicely stocked with reasonably priced options. All in all, a great experience that I’d definitely recommend!

For context, the reason we chose this place was mainly due to the fact that of our 6 days in Portugal we only had 2 in Porto, and only 1.5 really in Porto considering that half a day was dedicated to Guimaraes.... Given these time constraints we found this place attractive as it was the only place in our research that gave you a winery tour along with a fado show at the end and both of those had good reviews. So we thought, well, why not, let's kill two birds with one stone and it turned out to be a brilliant decision! We booked them online and the overall winery tour >> wine tasting + fado experience takes about 1.5 hours. They begin with the tour (multiple languages available, we chose english) around 6.30 PM where our guide explained to us what distinguishes Port wine from other wines (both within Iberia and elsewhere) and why the soil and climate of the Douro valley make it ideal for Port wine cultivation. She also explained many minutiae about Portugese wine growing culture around Port wine and how it's more family business run and smaller scale than the industrial grade spanish wine growing culture. She threw around tidbits of cork also but honestly the best thing she told me was that there existed the notion of "Port and tonic" which is like "gin and tonic" but with Port wine instead and I can't believe I didn't know that from earlier research because boy it was delicious and "Port & tonic" IMO is the ONLY way to have Port wine... I dare you to change my mind....!! Anyway they took us through their winery, they showed all the barrels of different sizes and explain the significance of them... It's quite an exhaustive tour at the end of which your fado show is combined with the wine tasting experience... So for the wine tasting, they have us each a glass of the fine white and a 10 year aged tawny port red. You know how they say the best compliment that food can get is that the person eating just shuts up and eats it all up, I believe the finest compliment a wine tasting can get is if the taster ends up buying the wines they tasted and you can see now that those 2 bottles accompanied me in an 11 hour indirect flight to India, and now sit in my collection :) The Fado show was brilliant too, definitely the piece de resistance of the tour when paired with the wine tasting..... The performers were very talented and energetic and the atmosphere felt cosy enough for one to connect with the performers while admittedly not being a very small venue.... So if you want a fado where there is a very limited audience maybe this isn't the place for you.... We really enjoyed this experience though On the whole from the vibe of the place, to the staff, to the collection and killing 2 birds with one stone, I've no regrets and do recommend this place to folks who may want a similarly clubbed experience

Great experience, I totally recommend ! We went there to do a guided tour and also a tasting of three different Porto wines, and it was perfect. The guided tour was really interesting, we learned a lot and obviously got a little souvenir to bring back home and try with family !