Brazil is country of Cachaca, which is made by fermenting sugar cane, in our previous blogs we have mentioned drinks of Brazil. Cachaca is the national drink of Brazil but it doesn’t mean that Brazil is not a source of other liquors. Apart from Cachaca Brazil also produces superior quality wines, In Brazil Minas Gerais, São Paulo and the Northeastern States are major production area of wine, but Serra Gaúchais the place where 90% of the production of wine in the Country is concentrated. Do you know the reason? We will tell you, because most appropriate grapes for wine require low temperatures, like those found in the Southern region of Brazil, which make this place suitable for grape farming and wine production.

If you to please your taste buds with bud hitting wine and want to check the quality of the local production and also experience a different Brazil from the beach and jungle historic places, come to see the landscapes, mountains and fields covered in vines, visit the municipalities of Caxias do Sul and Bento Gonçalves and Rio Grande do Sul, the region presents visitors with a rich cultural and historical legacy left by Italian immigrants who arrived in Brazil in the 19th century: the churches and chapels there built, the devotion to the saints, the accent and, mainly, the cultivation of vines and wine production in accordance with techniques brought from Italy.

In Serra Gaúcha, you can visit dozens of wineries, from small one with modest productionand the large ones with dozens of different brands. You can also taste the delicious local cuisine, with lots of pasta and cheeses along with wine.

We have created a three-day itinerary tour for your vineyard visit let’s have a look and get ready to visit the places.

Day 1:Valley of the Vineyards

The first day of the tour starts with the visit of Bento Gonçalves which is known as the valley of vineyard, it is a small town with ten thousand inhabitants and is the starting point for a visit to the famous Vale dos Vinhedos. It is 120 km from Porto Alegre, you can there by car and it will take around 2-hour drive to reach there. To best enjoy the tour, the ideal is to arrive in the town the day before it and stay overnight, in local hotels as the place is small and less known you can easily find a good hotel.

The next day morning have proper breakfast and get ready for exploring the dozens of wineries in the region. Almost all of them provide samples of their wines and products. Some charge entry, but the amount paid may be reversed in credit for purchases in their stores. You can opt a tour company who can take you to wineries. After the tour visit Casa do Vinho (Wine House), which is situated in the town center.

Day 2: Steam Locomotive Tour

On the second day of tour, its time to see something vintage, yes you have a chance to see steam locomotive from close. In Brazil you can take a ride in vintage steam locomotive train, which comes under old railway, it departs from Bento Gonçalves and takes you to cultural tour of Brazil, it has a transverse of 23 km, during which you can enjoy theater performances, a choral and lots of music from Italy and Rio Grande do Sul. Arrive early at the station, so as not to lose the first tasting, with wines produced in the town. The locomotive stops at Garibaldi, where you can enjoy some more music and the second tasting of the day, this time sparkling wine and grape juice, welcomes tourists. Then, it heads to Carlos Barbosa, from where it returns back to Bento Gonçalves station.

As the ride only takes a few hours, you can take a ride in the morning and you can visit rest of the places in afternoon, visit the Salto Ventoso waterfall, in Farroupilha, which serves as a backdrop and famous shooting location for several films and series in Brazil. Some tour companies offer the steam locomotive ride along with the visit to the EpopeiaItaliana Theme Park, where the story of the immigrants who came from Italy to Brazil is performed by Brazilian artists.

Day 3:Wine production

Lat day of tour starts with Caxias do Sul which is famous for itsgrape festival, which is held in  every two years, in this festival everyone in Brazil celebrates Italian culture, immigration, and the wine production in the region. However, if you do not have the good fortune of being there when the celebration happens, don’t worrythe city does not live just for the feast, there is plenty to do.

Visit Estrada dos Immigrants, a highway which began to be constructed by Dom Pedro II, in the 1870s. Along the road, there are several places to make a stop, with beautiful landscapes, caves, churches, restaurants and museums.

Upon arrival, you can go on one of several tours that the location offers, such as the Ana Rech tour, which includes a visit to a typical village built by immigrants; the Caminhos da Colônia tour, which passes through landscapes and vineyards of Caxias do Sul and Flores da Cunha; or the Vale Trentino tour, in which you can learn about the history of wine production in the city and taste grapes and its derivatives in Museu Municipal da Uva e do Vinho Primo Slomp.

At night, be sure to visit the delicious restaurants and taste typical delicacies, which are great to warm up from the cold, such as pasta, soups and local desserts – which taste more when taken with local wine.

Points of Attraction:

• Vale dos Vinhedos
• Casa do Vinho
• Salto Ventoso waterfall and park
• Italian epic theme park
• Maria fumaca tour
• Estrada dos Immigrants
• Primo slomp Grape and Wine museum