Kopke Wine House — Restaurant in Vila Nova de Gaia

KOPKE 🍷 On my last day I had to do a port tasting officially on Gaia. So many options… I went with KOPKE. Simply because the name on the building had what I wanted ! It says “ THE OLDEST PORT WINE HOUSE.” Walked in and was greeted by staff all smiles. FERNANDO assured me and showed me upstairs to where I would sit and indulge. I chose the SUBLIME port tasting. LOVED IT ! I’m a big tawny fan, new to white port and enjoyed the variety this tasting offered. The chocolates were a nice touch. FERNANDO offered to tell me about each port, I like the option rather than being forced to listen. I learned a lot. The view of the harbor, sun shining in,my senses were pleasantly delighted. As I make my way downstairs to exit I meet another staff member ( didn’t get his name- sorry) super helpful and insightful. VINTAGE port isn’t about aging 20+ years, it’s simply a year the heads of PORTO WINE decided the vintage is exceptional. 🫠 ( I didn’t know that!) I bought two bottles that will be shipped to the US and can’t wait ! Then I’ll store them for 25 years … Not kidding. It was suggested, not advised. I’m always up for a challenge. 🫣

It’s nice to receive service that is genuine without feeling pressure to buy. Will definitely come back and try the other...

I had a great tasting experience at Kopke. The staff was very friendly and informative. There is a store downstairs and once you decide on the tasting you want to go with (I went with the Exelencia), you are led upstairs to enjoy your tasting at your own table and at your own pace. The view from inside the tasting room out over the river and Porto on the other side was spectacular and relaxing. The setup also allows you to chat with and share your experience with others in the room, if you so choose. The wines are excellent and this is one of the houses that has aged whites. The downstairs store has lots of options to choose from if you want to ship some back home or take a bottle back to your hotel or Airbnb. I stopped by without a reservation in mid-February, but would recommend reaching out ahead of time if you're visiting outside of low season. I highly recommend...

We did the "sublime" pack and added cheese. The wines provided were great, the package provided wines I liked and wines my more experienced friend liked, which was really important.

They paired the wines with chocolates. I found the chocolates overpowering and stopped trying them with the wines after the second attempt.

I thought the cheeses needed more description, it would have made it easier to discuss and perhaps buy later.

As far as what to expect, you'll come in, look at the packages, then wait upstairs until your tasting is ready. We didn't have to wait long at all. But we did see one couple leave because they had arrived at the same time as other tables.

The upstairs tasting room was a little loud to me when the other tables were full with large groups. There's nothing you can do about that but if you're planning an intimate tasting try to plan when they...