Minho
Main Cities of Minho
Minho - historical region of Portugal, whose name originates from the Rio Minho, a Spanish river (in Spanish,
Miño) that originates in the
Serra de Meira, in Lugo, Galicia. Of its 340 km length, only the last 75 km are shared with Portugal, serving as
natural border with Galicia (Spain), from the municipality of Melgaço to its mouth, in Caminha (on the Portuguese side) and A Guarda (on the Spanish side).
Located in the
north of Portugal, this region borders Spain, from which it is separated by the River Minho.
In addition to the Rio Minho, the region is also crossed from northeast to northwest by the rivers Lima, Cávado (and its tributary Rio Homem), the Ave, the
Vizela and, to the east, through the Tâmega, which crosses the Terras de Basto.
View of the City of Barcelos, Lower Minho © RTAM / Images of Portugal
The
Minho Province, (former region of the
Between Douro and Minho;
today inserted in the
North region, it comprises the districts of
Braga (Baixo Minho) and
Viana do Castelo (Alto Minho).
Alto (High) Minho
The
District of Viana do Castelo, with ten
municipalities, corresponds to the territory of the
Alto Minho.
The capital of the
District of Viana do Castelo, as well as the
municipality of the same name, is the city of
Viana do Castelo.
Baixo (Low) Minho
As for the
District of Braga, in the
Baixo Minho,
the city is capital of the district and council of
Braga. In addition to being the capital of the
Minho region.
Main cities
Of the
10 biggest cities of Minho, Alto Minho appears only twice, with its capital, Viana do Castelo , and Valença do Minho.
All other important cities are in Baixo Minho. The most important cities in Minho are as follows:
Between the Minho and Douro rivers, the traditional
Entre-Douro-et-Minho, the Vinhos Verdes (DOC) vineyards extend over 34,000 ha,
in the Northwest Region of Portugal (Minho). In their traditional form, many vines lean on trees, such as oaks and plane trees,
among others.
For decades, Vinho Verde was the most representative wine of all wines in Portugal.
Celorico de Basto
Largest producer of Vinho Verde in the whole of Minho, the municipality of
Celorico de Basto
produces 49,520 hl of green wines, of which 37,134 hl of white wines (reds, 10,064 hl and rosé, 2,322 hl) [2].
