History of Portuguese wine much to spread viticulture and winemaking further north. Portuguese wines were first shipped to England in the 12th century from the Entre Douro e Minho region (which today includes modern Portuguese wine regions such as the douro and vinho verde). In 1386, Portugal and England signed the Treaty of Windsor which fostered close diplomatic relations between the two countries and opened the door for extensive trade opportunities. The 1703 Methuen Treaty furthered advanced English economic interest in Portugal by reducing tariffs and giving Portuguese wines preferential treatment in the British wine market over French wines. Around this time, the fortified
Texas wine Houston. In recent years this area's wine industry has been hard hit by Pierce's Disease. The high humidity around the northern end of this area makes it difficult to grow vinifera grapes, while vines in the Muscadine family flourish. Roughly in the center is the Texas Hill Country AVA where vinifera is grown. At the far southwest end of this region, along the Mexico–United States border is the state's oldest winery, Val Verde, which has been in operation for over a century, making sweet fortified wines. The central-western third of the state is known as the Trans-Pecos Regions which produces