PORTGUAL: Storms hit Port crops - report

By just-drinks.com editorial team | 19 June 2006

Severe storms in Portugal last week have destroyed much of the Port wine crop in the north of the country, according to local reports.

According to an Associated Press report late last week, local officials said that up to 80% of the Port wine crops in their districts was lost in the storms.

Officials at the Portuguese government's Port and Douro Wines Institute, which gathers information on the industry, could not be reached for comment when contacted by just-drinks today (19 June).

The AP report said that almost 2,500 acres of vineyards in the councils of Alijo, Sao Joao da Pesqueira and Sabrosa, have been affected. The districts are among the most important port-producing regions.

In Sabrosa, losses were close to 80%, Mayor Jose Manuel Marques told Associated Press.

"Eight of our 15 parishes are heavily compromised with many farmers affected," Marques was quoted as saying. "We are still assessing damages but I can say that some 80% of our production has been destroyed alongside other crops."

Sectors: Wine