Toby & Emma Wedding Pix

23 November 2025

Portugal's River Of Gold – Lisbon>Porto – Viking Osfrid – 23 November 2025

 


Day 7 – Sunday 23 November 2025

 – Cruise Day 5


At 08:45 was an excursion to the town of Favaios where we’d visit its museum, a bakery and co-operative winery and have lunch, while the boat cast-off and continued down river. It was quite a long coach ride, going up through low-lying patchy clouds.


There were 3 coaches and each visited the three sites in a different order. We first visited the small museum featuring the wine of the town, Moscatel de Favaios. The variety used is named Moscatel Galego because it was introduced by Galicians. (But Wine Grapes book says it is a synonym of the widely planted Muscat Blanc a Petit Grains).


The other local speciality featured in the museum is Four Corner bread, which is a large soft roll looking like crossed dumbbells. The enthusiasm of the young guide in the museum was infectious, but I wonder if he could maintain it for the next two groups.


Next we visited Favaios co-operative winery where the winery guide wore a fleece with ‘Follow me, I know where the wine is’ printed on its back. And so we did, taking the route grapes took from the receiving bay through  the cellar and finally to a glass of Moscatel de Favaios. This is a fortified wine, made like Port, but using Muscat grapes.




Then we were supposed to go to a bakery, but instead of a roaring fire the oven was cold and it was an exhibition kitchen, not a working bakery. The cook rolled dough and swiftly made a couple of Four Corner breads. She then reached out a basket of previously cooked rolls and we were invited to tear a roll in two and help ourselves to various savoury and sweet toppings.





Then all three coaches rendezvoused at Quinta Avessada at a large dining place set in vineyards. We had a watery soup, a slab of meat (which I was assured afterwards was beef) with mash. Dessert, which was chocolate cake with a whole pear poached in red wine, was best. Disappointing meal but plenty of wine.


Then to the coaches to meet the boat at Folgosa and onwards to stop at Regua, at 17:00, for our overnight mooring.


Location https://what3words.com/supermarket.merchant.farces


Click here to go to Day 8

Click here to go to Day 1

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