Douro (intermunicipal community)

The Comunidade Intermunicipal do Douro is an administrative division in Portugal. It replaced the Comunidade Urbana do Douro, created in 2004. It takes its name from the Douro River. The seat of the intermunicipal community is Vila Real. Douro comprises parts of the former districts of Bragança, Guarda, Vila Real and Viseu. The population in 2011 was 205,157, in an area of 4,031.58 km².

Douro is also a NUTS3 subregion of Norte Region. The subregion Douro covers the same area as the intermunicipal community, but including the municipalities Murça (Alto Trás-os-Montes intermunicipal community), and excluding the municipality Vila Flor. As of 2011, the subregion had a population of 205,902 and a total area of 4,108 km².

Its economic activity is largely centered on the production of wine, particularly port, and also non-fortified Douro wine from the Douro DOC wine region. The entire region is mountainous and crossed by steep valleys.

Municipalities

The CIM Douro is composed of 19 municipalities:

Douro DOC

Douro is a Portuguese wine region centered on the Douro River in the Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro region. It is sometimes referred to as the Alto Douro (upper Douro), as it is located some distance upstream from Porto, sheltered by mountain ranges from coastal influence. The region has Portugal's highest wine classification as a Denominação de Origem Controlada (DOC). While the region is associated primarily with Port wine production, the Douro produces just as much table wine (non-fortified wines) as it does fortified wine. The non-fortified wines are typically referred to as "Douro wines".

The style of wines produced in the Douro range from light, Bordeaux style claret to rich Burgundian style wines aged in new oak.

History

There is archaeological evidence for winemaking in the region dating from the end of the Western Roman Empire, during the 3rd and 4th centuries AD, although grape seeds have also been found at older archaeological sites. In Medieval times from the mid-12th century, Cistercians had an important influence on winemaking in the region, through their three monasteries Salzedas, São João de Tarouca and São Pedro das Águias.