Set among vineyards above the River Pinhão, the enchanting
village of Sabrosa is a sleepy place with a wealth of 15th-century
houses. It is also popular for its full-bodied red wine made
locally at the Adega Cooperativa winemaking plant. What to see. Visitors to Sabrosa can see the house where
the explorer Ferdinand Magellan (1480-1521) once lived. One
ship of his fleet of five (commanded by the Basque Juan Sebastián
de Elcano) was the first to circumnavigation the globe (1519-22).
Magellan, whose real name is Fernão de Magalhães,
was killed by natives in the Philippines. Nearby. Vila Real to the north-west of Sabrosa is a large
town on the edge of the Tras-os-Montes region. It is worth visiting
for its Gothic cathedral, plus the picturesque Mateus Palace
and Luso-Roman rock temple nearby. Pinhão, 15 km south
of Sabrosa, is at the heart of the Douro Valley, and in the
spot where the soil and climatic conditions are said to produce
the best Port wine. Occupying a small strip of flat land on
the right bank of the river, Pinhão comes comes alive
with activity and festivities during the grape harvest in autumn.
