According to the Intermunicipal Community of Lower Alentejo (CIMBAL), one of the event's promoters, it is estimated that "one in four households" in Lower Alentejo has "connections to activities in the wine sector," namely viticulture or wine production.

The region's 537 winegrowers represent 27% of all winegrowers in the Alentejo.

Of this total, 167 are members of the Alentejo Wines Sustainability Program (PSVA), under the responsibility of the Alentejo Regional Wine Commission (CVRA), and cover a production area of ​​over 3,400 hectares, of which 10 are wine producers with sustainable production certification.

The title European City of Wine 2026 was awarded to Lower Alentejo for its strengths in vineyards, wine production, sustainability, and community.

The event officially opens its program of celebrations on Friday, with a gala at the Pax Julia Municipal Theatre in Beja, starting at 8:30 pm.

From Spain to Portugal

In a statement, the Beja City Council indicated that the celebration will mark "the passing of the baton of the 'European City of Wine' from Spain to Portugal," with the flag being handed over by the Ambassador of the Wine Territories of Portugal 2025.

The event also includes musical performances by Cristina Taquelim and Ana Santos, Cantadores do Desassossego, Grupo Coral de Nossa Senhora das Neves, Fernando Pardal, Jorge Cruz, and Mafalda Vasques.

The European City of Wine 2026 is promoted by the Regional Tourism Entity (ERT) of Alentejo and Ribatejo and by CIMBAL, with the support of the 13 municipalities that make up the organisation. Only one municipality in the Beja district, Odemira, which is part of the Intermunicipal Community of Alentejo Litoral, is excluded.

Celebrating the project

According to the Beja City Council, the gala will celebrate “the project resulting from institutions that preserve their history and tradition, that value their heritage and, in this case, one of the most emblematic products of the territory, wine, intrinsically linked to local identity”.

This was another aspect highlighted by the promoting entities as ‘attracting’ the European title, as it is “the only region in the country that has a strategy for economic and regional development for the wine and tourism sector”, through the ENOTUR project - Wine Tourism of Alentejo and Ribatejo.

According to CIMBAL, this is part of the Economic Valorisation of Endogenous Resources Program (PROVERE), within the scope of the Alentejo 2030 Regional Program, and aims to "bring greater knowledge and innovation to the Lower Alentejo [and] pioneering network projects for winery certification".

Simultaneously, the history that accompanies the production of talha wine – "one of the fundamental pillars of the application" – and the cultural atmosphere surrounding "the geography and space par excellence of Alentejo singing" also contribute to the distinction.

Opening gala

"The opening gala is also an opportunity to publicise the program planned for the 13 municipalities of CIMBAL, which extends until January 2027," the statement reads.

Throughout the year, the European City of Wine 2026 program includes a "very wide" range of activities, such as thematic events, conferences, sales workshops, competitions, and pop-up events, among other actions, distributed across the themes "Wine in the Arts," "Wine in Heritage," and "Wine in the Street."

The program includes events such as Gravel & Wine, Wine Music Series, Rural Song Festival, Wines on Water, the City of Wine and Wine Territories Ambassadors competitions, as well as the annual fairs Vin&Cultura (Aljustrel), Ovibeja and ViniPax (Beja), Wine Festival (Mértola), MouraWine (Moura), Vitifrades and Vidigueira Vinho (Vidigueira).