Porto (or Oporto as it is sometimes known), the northern powerhouse of Portugal, is buzzing. People no longer work in Porto and play in Lisbon; they work in Porto and play in the Douro, now truly the river of gold. It is fifty years since the River Douro was dammed and only now is the region really benefiting from tourists.
I visited recently with a group of wine-loving friends and stayed both in the city and in the Douro Valley. We started our tastings at Taylor’s classic port lodge. David Guimaraens, the chief wine maker and old family friend, lead us through a magnificent array of Taylor, Fonseca and Croft ports. We kicked off with Taylor’s Chip Dry white port which everyone loves and swears they will drink back in the UK, but no one ever does. David explained that each of these three iconic port houses have their own ‘blender’. He also told us that the art of the blender for aged tawny ports is to eliminate the style of the vintage to achieve the style of the house.
A word of background intel. Taylor’s bought Croft, the company I had worked for in the 1970s as Marketing Director, in 2001. Since then, Taylor’s, under the expansive direction of their CEO Adrian Bridge, has transformed the real estate and port lodges owned by Croft into a magnificent hotel, the Yeatman, and an all-encompassing wine cultural centre, the World of Wine (WOW) which also includes turning the lodges into restaurants etc. WOW was too vast to explore all the experiences and museums, but we had a great dinner in the delightful Thompson and Croft dining area (below the old offices at Croft).
The Factory House in Porto is one of the ‘wonders of the wine world’. Not a factory in any sense it is where, since the 1650s, British merchants living in Portugal have met to conduct business. The current Palladian-style building, complete with ballroom and imposing map room, was constructed between 1785 and 1790. The Factory also boasts two identical dining rooms.
The next morning we caught a bus to the wondrously azulejos-tiled Sao Bento station for our scenic train journey to Pinhao, the de facto centre of fine port. We had opted for a picnic lunch at Quinta do Bomfim, home of Dow’s port, and what a picnic. We ate on the high-up terrace with a commanding view of the broad river below. ‘Three courses with wine’ does not do this picnic feast justice. Dow’s dry white port and tonic to start, Symingtons’ Altano Douro wines to accompany the food and then Dow’s 20 year old tawny to finish.
Our next stop: Quinta la Rosa, a kilometre or two downriver. Owned by the Berquist family for generations, the current chatelaine, Sophia Berquist, has transformed this once simple family home into a thriving wine- and port-producing Quinta and a beautifully appointed boutique hotel.
Built on slim terraces, you would need to triple John Buchan’s Thirty Nine steps to reach destinations on all the different levels. An enchanting swimming pool occupies part of one terrace; rows of vines on others; the winery stands firm whilst the various hotel rooms, overlooking the river, all vie for space.
Our next destination was the hilltop village of Sao Joao de Pesqueira. The driver was a bit lost. The satnav was clearly suggesting that our address was in a modern industrial estate. But we were supposed to be tasting 19th century ports.
All was revealed when we saw our host, Cristiano van Zeller and his wife Joana, emerge to greet us. Cristiano, whose family have been involved with port in the Douro Valley since 1620, is now specialising in ultra-rare tawny ports and had recently transferred his tiny but intensely valuable stockholding to a proper air-conditioned site. The ultimate garagiste.
We all sat down theatre-style while Cristiano first offered us two 1968 colheita – aged in wood – ports. At first glance, they looked quite similar. Then, holding them up to the light, differences began to emerge. On the left was a fifty-six-year-old white port which had gained in colour in wood; on the right was a similarly aged red port which had lost colour in wood. An enlightening way to start a tasting.
Our placemat indicated that we would soon be tasting an 1888, an 1870 and an 1860. These rarities cannot be described as vintage port as they are aged in wood, not in bottle. Nor can they be described as colheita port as they were born before they could be officially registered by the authorities. Cristiano and his daughter Francisca have described these respectively as tributes to Liberty, Family and Poetry.
I have been fortunate to have tasted these before with Cristiano, but my highlights this time round were:
1888 richest of colours; masterfully integrated luxury; the most complex
1870 more pronounced luxury layers in aroma and taste; classic body
1860 lighter in colour; purity of aromas and taste; finesse on the palate
I’m also including Hugh Johnson’s comments, as he tasted them soon afterwards in London:
1888 Alarming! Leather, celery, caramel…then faintly fizzy on tongue. Nose develops fresh and flowery! Very long.
1870 Heady at first, sharper and finer than the ’88. Less sting. Dances in shining bronze robes. In Falstaff’s words, ‘searching’.
1860 Heavier, more caramel nose, less complex, sharper less perfect balance. Goes down almost kicking.
The metal doors opened and we were back in the 21st century. Dinner at the established DOC restaurant, downstream, included some of Cristiano and Joana’s bottles of their CV range of table wines, including 2021 CV and 2018 CV whites and 2020 CV red. All were enchantingly produced. The imposing jeroboam of CV 2017 red was like velvet and was the star of this happy dinner.
The vineyards of Quinta do Panascal were our next destination and are the backbone of Fonseca vintage port. In a way, the Latour of the Douro. Fonseca is perhaps the most rich and illustrious of all vintage ports, alongside Graham’s and Taylor’s of course. Fonseca’s dry white port and tonic was served as our aperitif for our lunch and the other Douro classic, their chilled 20 year old tawny port, as a so satisfying digestif..
Forget the Caribbean. Head for the Douro and stay at la Rosa.
There is something special about family-owned or produced wines or wineries. The same corporate end-product somehow lacks that extra finesse, that special craftsmanship. The hospitality smiles seem more genuine. The quality of the food is more personal.
We were also delighted at the standard of food in the local restaurants. I had the freshest grouper, the best cod carpaccio and the finest sardines in different restaurants by the mouth of this enduring and enchanting river. Boom time it certainly is for this destination city.
Vintners’ Scholar Ben Howkins has been involved with wine all his life. A former member of the Royal Household Wine Committee and a WSET trustee, he has a deep knowledge of port and sherry built up over many years, and writes about his favourite wines with a lively enthusiasm tinged with humour. His latest book, Adventures in the Wine Trade is available in our shop.
