There are some Quintas who take their table wines more seriously than their Ports and even some who produce no Port at all even though they are are in the heart of the classic region and are permitted to do so.
We stay at Quinta de la Rosa in Pinhão and it is fitting that we start with their wines and ports over dinner. On the first day we visit the Symingtons, taking the train to Quinta do Vesuvio, Dona Antonia Ferreira’s great 19th century property recently restored. Vesuvio produces a wine every year much as a chateau would. Other Symington quintas such as Dow’s Quinta do Bomfim are not bottled in the top years as their wines go to make the lodge’s Vintage. We lunch at Dow’s Bomfim with a tasting of other Symington wines.
Dinner tonight is at Quinta do Noval over which we will taste the Nacional port made from Noval’s pre-phylloxera vines and Cedro their stunning new table wine.
So much is happening in the Douro and Charles is excited to be taking you to these dynamic estates during harvest. There will be special visits to Ramos Pinto in the Douro Superior and Niepoort which was one of the first lodges to seriously embrace the idea of making high quality table wines in the Douro.
At dinner we hope to be joined by two talented winemakers of the new generation, Jorge Borges and Sandra Tavares. As husband and wife team they have a joint project, ‘Pintas’, a superb table wine from near Pinhão. In their ‘day jobs’, Sandra makes the wines and ports for Cristiano Van Zeller’s Quinta do Vale D. Maria and Jorge is winemaker at the Quinta do Passadouro.
Interestingly in all their projects, the LBVs and even lowly ‘ruby’ Ports are unfiltered and can be aged. Also they make no Tawny. Our last night is in Oporto staying at the 5* Infante do Sagres and dinner is as guests of Taylor’s lodge in Vila Nova. There are many small Port lodges over in Vila Nova and one gets the feeling that some of these must contain lost treasure. Most don’t, but our last tasting at the lodge of Andresen is of all you would hope for, old Colheitas and ancient Tawnies.
Tour Itinerary:
Day 1: Meet Oporto Airport. from flight TAP at 16.30. Tasting. Dinner. Private Quinta hotel 3 star/4 star.
Day 2: Visits & lunch in Cima Corgo. Dinner at Noval.
Day 3: Visits & lunch in Douro Superior. Tasting dinner.
Day 4: Visits & lunch in Cima Corgo. Dinner at Taylors.
Day 5: Visit in Vila Nova. Early PM transfer to airport.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Price Includes :
- 3 nights Private Quinta, (3/4* equivalent), 1 night in 5 star hotel
- Breakfasts, 7 meals with wines
- Coach transfers to & from Oporto airport
- Taxi, boat, train & vineyard workers truck! Visits & tastings
- Wine Guide & Tour Manager
Travel: Meet at Oporto airport
Sole Occupancy: £75.00
Deposit: £300.00
Room Upgrade: £60
Also see tour packages in:
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Portugal
Food & Wine
Cultural Journey
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