The Via Vinho hosts sharing a glass with guests at a family wine estate in Portugal at golden hour.

Our Story

The people behind the wine.

A small, independent team running private wine experiences in Portugal. We started Via Vinho because this country's wine deserves to be shouted about, and because tasting it should feel like lingering in the sun, not being herded through a cellar.

Our story

How Via Vinho began.

I grew up in South Africa, with Portuguese heritage, my family comes from central Portugal. In the Cape Winelands, wine tasting was always open to anyone curious enough to explore it, and that easy, generous accessibility stayed with me.

I'd just stepped away from a creative agency I co-founded. It had done well, but the industry had burnt me out, so I went back to South Africa to work out what came next. Somewhere among the Cape vineyards it clicked: the slow, welcoming way the Winelands open up to people could translate so beautifully to Lisbon. Portugal makes some of the most extraordinary wine in the world, it should be shouted about.

I was describing it to my friend Hazel, more pipe dream than plan, and she simply said: you should do it. I asked if she'd come on the journey with me. She said yes, and in 2024, together, we started Via Vinho.

A founder of Via Vinho walking among the vines at a Portuguese wine estate.

What we believe

The kind of day you keep, not in a photograph, but as a feeling.

So much of wine tourism is built for volume: large groups herded through, tastings poured and cleared so the next coach can pull in. There's a place for that, but it was never what moved us.

What we love about wine is slower than that, and more sensory. The hedonism of a long afternoon. The sun, the view, the Atlantic breeze, a glass you're in no hurry to finish. Meeting the person who made it. That's what we set out to make instead, small, private, and in no hurry.

How we do it

Door by door.

There was no shortcut to the access we wanted, so Hazel and I rented a car and drove, quinta to quinta, simply asking whether they'd open their doors to us. Most were generous. One we'll never forget is Filipe Palhoça: at first it was impossible to even book a tasting, so we just turned up. Pedro was hesitant, but he gave us a chance, agreed to host a few tours, and two years on it's still one of our favourite estates.

Every estate we visit is there because we know the people behind it. That's the whole difference, a door that opens through a relationship, not a booking.

Small private groups Fully hosted Transport & lunch included Portuguese · English · Spanish
The founders of Via Vinho visiting a family-run wine estate in Portugal, access opened door by door through personal relationships.

The women behind Via Vinho.

I might be the founder, but I only held up because of the women standing with me.

Nicola Marques, founder and host of Via Vinho, sipping a glass of Portuguese wine.

Nicola

Founder & Host

South African with Portuguese roots, and the person most likely to be hosting your day. Nicola started Via Vinho to bring the easy, open spirit of the Cape Winelands to the country her family comes from, and to give Portugal's wine the noise it deserves.

Hazel Shaw, co-founder of Via Vinho, laughing during a private wine tasting in Portugal.

Hazel

Co-founder

Hazel and Nicola founded Via Vinho together. WSET-accredited, she taught Nicola how to taste, to find the notes, to understand how the wine is made, over elaborate lunches built around a perfectly paired ASF Branco from Fernão Pó. She shaped the brand and its whole visual world, calmed the chaos and carried the admin. Now flourishing in a career of her own, she still steps in when needed, and dreams about Via Vinho as big as ever.

Meg, host and champion of Via Vinho, in a Portuguese vineyard near Lisbon.

Meg

Host & Champion

Our greatest supporter since the idea was first floated over wine in Graça. Meg charms producers, holds a day together when everything's falling apart, and has a way of leaving guests wanting to visit her back home. She's opened her bar for our events, puts Via Vinho before any industry tasting, and is the warmest friend this whole thing could have.

In their words

What guests take home.

★★★★★
"Our tour of the wineries was truly amazing! Nicola, Hazel, and Megan were fantastic hosts and the wineries were delightful. We all learned a lot about the wines and the process of making wines that the winemakers employ. I can't more highly recommend this tour!"
Benjamin Fajen · Google review
★★★★★
"We did the Alenquer Via Vinho tour with friends and it was an absolute blast! A full day enjoying the autumnal vineyard vibes about an hour north of Lisbon. So easy to be picked up in a spacious van right in the centre of Lisbon and driven to three different locations, with a five-course lunch overlooking Alenquer included. The ladies running Via Vinho were super responsive and attentive throughout. Would highly recommend to anyone wanting a nice excursion outside the busy city!"
Monica Perez · Google review

Questions, Answered

Good to know.

Who is behind Via Vinho?
Via Vinho was founded in 2024 by Nicola Marques, South African with Portuguese heritage, together with Hazel Shaw. Nicola hosts many of the experiences herself, alongside a small circle of trusted regional specialists and the producer families we have come to know personally.
Where are you based, and where do you operate?
We're based in Lisbon and host private wine experiences across the surrounding regions, the Setúbal Peninsula, Colares on the Atlantic coast, and Torres Vedras, with bespoke journeys reaching further across Portugal.
What languages do you host in?
We host in Portuguese, English and Spanish.
How is Via Vinho different from a standard wine tour?
We keep groups small and private, host every experience personally, and visit family-run estates we know by name, never large coach-tour operations. The pace is unhurried: time to linger over a glass, a long lunch and the view, rather than being moved along for the next group.
Is Via Vinho a licensed operator?
Yes, Via Vinho is a registered tourism animation activity in Portugal, licence RNAAT 959/2024.
What makes Via Vinho a luxury wine experience?
Not chandeliers. Luxury here means a small party, an unhurried day built around one region, direct access to the people who make the wine, and a published price with a live booking calendar. If you are comparing us with the large agencies, the practical difference is that we are based in Lisbon and you can book tonight without a phone call.
Are your private experiences genuinely private?
Yes, and we mean it precisely. Private means your party only: your own vehicle, your own guide, your own table at every estate. You will never share a transfer or a tasting with another booking. If you see the word private on our site, that is the promise it carries.
Which wineries will we visit?
We work with a small circle of family estates on the Setúbal Peninsula, including Filipe Palhoça, Quinta de Alcube and Quinta de Catralvos, and the pairing rotates with the season and the harvest. What never changes is the nature of the visit. You are hosted at the winemaker's table, not walked past it, and the bottles that get opened are the ones the family chooses for you.
Why do you spend the whole day in one region?
Because the alternative is a day of driving. Most tours from Lisbon stack five stops into eight hours, and their own guests describe the result as rushed and tiring. We take one region slowly: two estates, a long lunch, and time to actually be in the place. It is a deliberate choice, and it is the one guests thank us for most.
Do I need to enquire for a price?
Only for Reserve journeys, which are built around you. Every Classic experience has its price published and a live calendar, and your booking confirms instantly. We think that is how it should work.
Do you run evening experiences?
Yes. Graça & Anjos After Dark is our evening wine walk through two of Lisbon's most atmospheric neighbourhoods, from €80 pp. It is the right choice if your days are spoken for, or the right ending if they are not.
Can you host a celebration or a larger group?
We regularly build days for groups of eight to twelve, from milestone birthdays to small company gatherings. Tell us the occasion through the enquiry form and we will shape the day around it, including a private estate table and, when the occasion calls for it, the winemaker as your host.

Come and taste it

Spend a day with us.

An afternoon among the Setúbal estates, or something built entirely around you, we'd love to host you.

Explore Classic Discover Reserve Enquire