The small town of São Lourenco do Bairro, Portugal, experienced a veritable river of red wine after 2.2 million liters of alcohol spilled onto a hilltop street, flowing throughout the city, local media reported Sunday.
The flow of wine, caused by an accident at the local Levira distillery, caused the streets to literally flood as huge, fast-moving tides of dark red wine swirled down the street, with images of the site going viral on social media.
But while it may have been a peculiar sight and probably a financial loss for Levira, the wine river could also have posed a serious problem. environmental threatand fears are growing that the deliciously colored liquid could head straight into a nearby river.
A Definitely Different Kind of Flood A river of red wine was flowing through São Lourenco do Bairro in Portugal when the local distillery's 2.2 million liter tanks exploded. The Anadia Fire Department blocked the floodwater and diverted it away from the river and into a field.pic.twitter.com/3AhIFt5rEH
- Maximo (@Rainmaker1973) September 11, 2023
Fortunately, the local fire department managed to divert the wine to a nearby field, keeping the river clear of alcohol.
A Wine Story: Previous Red Wine Mishaps in Europe
You might think this is the first time a city in Europe has experienced a strange mishap with red wine, causing it to start flowing where it shouldn't be after something went wrong at a nearby business.
You would also be wrong.
In 2020, the city of Castelvetro, Italy enjoyed red wine like never before: literally coming out of sink and shower faucets.
A technical error at a local winery in Lambrusco Grasparossa di Castelvetro during the bottling process caused 1,000 liters of wine to leak into the water pipes. Due to the high pressure, wine began to flow through the system and into homes throughout the town.
But while the Portuguese incident sparked some complaints about environmental risks, the Italian one saw a much nicer response: the wine was perfectly safe to drink and residents called it "a dream come true."
