Reflections On Our 2014 J. Lohr Wine Cruise
Portugal, Spain and the Douro River Valley
Submitted By Laura Marble, wine club director
As I write this, it’s been a couple of weeks since I returned from our 2014 J. Lohr Wine Cruise along Portugal’s majestic Douro River Valley. Coming back to the “real world” after a lengthy trip is always a transition; returning after spending 11 days exploring Portugal and Spain, eating fabulous food, drinking amazing wines, cruising a historic river, and making many, many new friends—well, let’s just say that there’s a little part of me that is still floating down the Douro.
So much happened over those 11 days, and there were so many unforgettable experiences, that it would be impossible to share them all. But as with any great trip, there were certainly some highlights. For our 2014 cruise, we had a total of 68 people in our group, which included Jerry and Jolene Lohr, Lawrence and Emily Lohr, and Steve Lohr and his girlfriend, Faranak, as well as Lawrence and Steve’s Uncle Bill and Aunt Arlene Waldorf, and Arlene’s sister Marcie and her husband Don. We were also joined by our good friends and longtime distributors: Michael and Kimberly Glazer with Glazer’s Family of Companies in Texas; Jim and Carla Myerson with Wine Warehouse in California; and Bob and Nancy Rubin with Ruby Wines in Massachusetts. Wine club members and other friends came from all over, including Alabama, Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, South Dakota and Washington.
It was a fascinating group full of wonderful people. Mingling together and meeting one another at our first night’s reception in Lisbon was an early highlight. J. Lohr’s Portuguese distributor, José Luis Santos, hosted a tasting of his delicious Casa Santos Lima wines as a welcome for our group, which added greatly to the evening. It was the perfect warm-up for our three days of strolling the lovely cobblestone streets of Lisbon and exploring the local shops and restaurants.
Before setting sail on the Douro, we traveled to the stunning Mosteiro dos Jerónimos (Hieronymites Monastery) and made an unforgettable daytrip to José Luis’s estate winery, where we were greeted by a 12-person traditional Portuguese band and dance troupe. When they asked members of our group to join them in a dance, Jolene, Steve and Lawrence, as well as some brave wine club members, were more than happy to oblige—and that was before we had a fantastic tasting with at least eight of José’s wines!
For our entire trip, the weather was perfect, which made for glorious days on the Douro River once we were aboard our ship: the beautifully appointed Queen Isabel. The Douro was stunning, with terraced vineyards and small historic quintas (farm buildings) dotting the picturesque riverbank. We also went through five locks, including one boasting the highest lift in Europe at 115 feet, which fascinated Jerry and Steve, both of whom were educated as civil engineers. When we weren’t away on day trips, shipboard life was wonderful, with excellent service, delicious meals shared with members of our group, and an array of J. Lohr wines—including many great library wines that we selected just for the cruise.
One of the most memorable trips was to the family-owned winery Quinta da Avessada, where we had a delightful wine tasting and a fantastic traditional country dinner. The evening was hosted by the owner, Luis Barros, who was a charming and funny storyteller. To add to the ambiance, there was live music—apparently many of the employees at the winery play instruments!
Since visiting Spain was on my bucket list, our trip to Salamanca was a memorable one for me. The sidewalk cafes with their yummy paella, tapas and beer were so much fun, even if we were all a bit surprised at 2 p.m. when everything shut down for siesta. How’s that for authentic?
There are so many other things I could talk about: the beautiful brightly-colored tile on so many of the buildings, the flamenco dancing in Spain, and listening to Faranak, a talented pianist, play for our group. And of course the wines were glorious, both the J. Lohr selections we brought and the local ones we discovered. I also saw something else I have never seen in all my time at J. Lohr—Jerry kicking back and relaxing with a book on the upper deck!
While I knew many of the people on the trip from various J. Lohr events, I can honestly say that I made some incredible friends on the cruise who I will stay in contact with for years to come. I think everyone had this same experience. We shared so many wonderful times together, and there was such a sense of fun and camaraderie in everything we did. I send my thanks to all of you who were there for making our 2014 cruise so unforgettable. And to those of you who could not make it—I hope to see you next time!
