1756 · Portugal
The Douro is demarcated
The Marquês de Pombal established a demarcated Port region with boundaries, classification and quality control.
What happened
Portugal's chief minister created the Companhia Geral da Agricultura das Vinhas do Alto Douro in 1756, granting it authority over the Port trade.
The region was physically demarcated with granite markers, vineyards were classified, and rules were set on what could be sold as Port.
The motivation was as much anti-fraud and anti-adulteration as it was quality: the trade had been undermined by wine of doubtful origin.
It is among the earliest examples of a formally delimited and regulated wine region with enforcement behind it.
How firmly this is dated
Documented. Recorded contemporaneously. The date is not in question.
The founding charter of the Companhia Geral da Agricultura das Vinhas do Alto Douro and the boundary markers, many still in place.
Sources
Sources consulted
- Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro e do Porto (IVDP) — IVDP, Portugal
Along the timeline
Before · 1737
The Tokaj classification
Tokaj received a royal classification of its vineyards, predating the more famous French systems.
After · c. 1750–1800
Madeira discovers what the voyage did to it
Wine that crossed the tropics twice came back better, and the island set about reproducing the effect deliberately.