Fodor's Expert Review Cooperativa Vitivinícola da Ilha do Pico

This cooperative was formed in 1949 by a group of local winemakers; by 1961, they had started producing wine using the traditional Verdelho, Arinto, and Terrantez grape varieties. Output remained small until the early 1990s, when the production processes were modernized and more varieties were introduced, including in 1997 the first fortified wine with a distilled spirit added (Lajido), and in 2001, the first sweet fortified wine (Angelica). Today, the cooperative is the largest wine producer in the Azores, with about 240 members growing grapes. Book well in advance or try your luck stopping by for a tour of the wine production facility.