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Tinto Cao is one of the top five grape varieties used in the production of quality Port in the Douro Valley. The low-yielding variety is prized for the spice and bite it delivers to red Port. Despite the dark hue of Tinto Cao grapes, the wines they produce are not as deeply colored as those made from the Douro's other principal grape varieties Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca and Tinta Roriz.

Over the centuries, winegrowers in the Douro have discovered that Tinto Cao is better suited to the region's less-sunny sites, where the cooler mesoclimate helps showcase the variety's elegant floral aromas. When grown in such sites, Tinto Cao, with its strong tannins and acidity, provides longevity to the port blend, helping the wines to age gracefully for many decades. Portuguese winemaking is traditionally concerned with blended wines and so, despite only making up a tiny fraction of vineyard area in the Douro (around 1 percent), Tinto Cao is an important player in the area.

The name Tinto Cao means "red dog", although there is little convincing evidence to explain its etymology. This is not the only wine grape name to refer to dogs; others include Esgana Cao (aka Sercial), and Etrangle-Chien (Mourvedre), both of whose names translate as "dog strangler".

Tinto Cao is also planted in Dao, where it may be produced as a blended or varietal dry red wine. A few Tinto Cao vines are planted in California where they are used in the production of port-style wines.

Synonyms include: Tinta Cao, Castellana Negra, Farmento, Teinta Cam.

Food matches for Tinto Cao include:

• Braised pork chops with crispy sage (dry)
• Chocolate and cherry tart (fortified)
• Stilton cheese (fortified)