Underground winery, lunch inside a mine and other surprises in Ametista do Sul
Anyone who hears "world capital of amethyst" pictures mines, stones and shops, and pictures it correctly. What nobody mentions at first is the rest: in Ametista do Sul you can drink wine aged inside basalt, have lunch inside a disused mine, take a lift up a tower beside the church and ride a motorised cart through a gallery lined with crystals.
These are the surprises included in the itinerary of November 2026: Ametista do Sul and Derrubadas, and they turn a trip about stones into a trip full of stories.
The winery that ages wine in a former mine
The Vinícola Ametista is family-run and was founded in 2009, but what makes it unique is the cellar: galleries of about 300 metres dug into the basalt, originally a mine, where the wines rest at a constant natural temperature. The visit goes through the galleries and ends with a tasting, included in the trip itinerary. Tasting a red wine from the north-west of Rio Grande do Sul metres inside the hardest rock in the region is an experience you will not find at another winery.
Lunch inside the mine
The Restaurante Subterrâneo Temático Belvedere Mina presents itself as the world's first restaurant themed on amethyst stones. It operates inside a disused mine, with stone everywhere. This is where the group has the closing lunch on Sunday, before returning to Porto Alegre. A meal underground in a mining town: lively conversation at the table, guaranteed.
The museum you tour by motorised cart
The Ametista Parque Museu says it has the largest mineral collection in Latin America: more than two thousand specimens, including a meteorite and pieces presented as the largest amethysts ever found. The visit includes a tour by motorised cart inside the mine, among crystals the size of a person. It is an activity for children that delights adults, and our group loves it.
The pyramid in the central square
In the middle of the town stands the Pirâmide Esotérica de Energização: a structure with an interior lined in amethyst, open to visitors and used for meditation. The structure was enhanced in 2018 and became an urban symbol of the town: purple in the square, in the middle of the Rio Grande do Sul countryside.
The church with a geode baptismal font
The main attraction is one everyone already knows by name: the Igreja Matriz São Gabriel, with more than 40 tonnes of druses covering walls, columns and altar. The detail that escapes the photograph is the baptismal font, a single geode of 500 kilograms, and the paintings of biblical passages set between the stones. Next door, the panoramic tower with a lift completes the view of the town.
And more: bamboo and blasting
Two last ones, for those who think they have seen it all: the Museu do Bambu (Bamboo Museum) celebrates bamboo with tastings of food products and household items made from the plant, an ecological tourism immersion in the middle of stone country. And at the working mine, the group watches a demonstration of drilling and blasting the rock, the method that opens the basalt and reveals the druses: a real mine, genuinely in operation.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a winery in Ametista do Sul?
Yes, the Vinícola Ametista, which is family-run, with wines aged in underground galleries of about 300 metres dug into the basalt. The visit with a tasting is part of the November trip itinerary.
Where can you have lunch inside a mine?
At the Restaurante Subterrâneo Temático Belvedere Mina, in Ametista do Sul, which operates in a disused mine. It is the closing lunch of our expedition.
What is the Ametista Parque Museu?
A museum with more than two thousand minerals, presented as the largest collection in Latin America, with a tour by motorised cart inside the mine.
Is Ametista do Sul worth visiting if you know nothing about stones?
It is. The winery, the underground restaurant, the museums, the church and Salto do Yucumã on the first morning make the trip a complete itinerary. The stone is the common thread, not a requirement.
When is the next departure?
From 27 to 29 November 2026, Friday to Sunday, departing from Porto Alegre. The full itinerary is on the page for November 2026: Ametista do Sul and Derrubadas, and booking is through WhatsApp, with me.
The town that turns stone into experience
Ametista do Sul could be just a mining hub, and it is the world's largest for amethyst, together with Artigas. But visitors find a town that has become a spectacle: purple in the church, wine in the rock, lunch in the mine. Come and see it up close. Message us on WhatsApp and secure your place on the November departure.
