Quinta do Portal, Douro Valley, 2023 © Spaswinefood
Welcome to Quinta do Portal, 2023 © Spaswinefood
I still remember that earlier fall visit in 2012.It was October, just after the harvest, when we visited Quinta do Portal, a boutique winery in the Douro Valley. It was so much fun to stay at a quinta (or vineyard) where the grapes are grown and the wine is produced. In fact staying at a Douro Valley quinta was the perfect place for this Spaswinefood enthusiast. Quinta do Portal offers great accommodations (Casa das Pipas) and there is a gourmet restaurant right on the property. Moreover, little did we know when we booked Quinta do Portal that we would get to spend quality time with winemaker, Paulo Coutinho.
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| Quinta do Portal's Casa das Pipas, 2012 © Spaswinefood |
Needless to say while at Quinta do Portal we enjoyed great food and wines and fabulous hospitality. (Spaswinefood, Fall 2012)
Return to Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood
The Return
Returning in 2023, my friend Carol and I, meant we could experience the vineyards in spring time.
Quinta do Portal, Douro Valley © Spaswinefood
We so enjoyed those spring time walks.
Quinta do Portal, Douro Valley © Spaswinefood
Spring time meant the grapes were just starting to bud.
Spring Time Vines, Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood
Grape Vines Starting to Bud, Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood
Besides observing the vineyard we loved taking in the views.
Taking in the Views, Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood
We took advantage of posing in the vineyard.
Carol, Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood
Spaswinefood Moments, Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood
We so enjoyed those vineyard walks.
Quinta do Portal Restaurant © Spaswinefood
We had the most fabulous breakfasts, toured the winery, and of course dined at the restaurant.
Quinta do Portal Restaurant © Spaswinefood
Some how we managed to have two dinners at the restaurant during our stay.
Yes, we toured the winery to find out what the latest wine suggestions were.
Touring Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood
We so enjoyed our stay at Quinta do Portal. Without a doubt, returning to the Douro Valley was an highlight of my 2023 wine travels in Portugal. For me, besides hanging out with wine enthusiast friends, it was perfect timing to be in the Douro. The Douro Valley wines is a must for wine lovers, especially if the wine lover appreciates learning about port and the other great wines produced in this region. I invite you to join me in my wine travels in Portugal and elsewhere at Wine Travels with Dr. Sharon, and at Spaswinefood on Twitter and Facebook. I am so looking forward to sharing more on my vine-filled explorations in Portugal.
CHEERS!
Sharon
May 2023
Douro Valley, Portugal
© Spaswinefood
Spaswinefood, Quinta do Portal 2023 © Spaswinefood
Remembering October 2012
It was October, just after the harvest, when we visited Quinta do Portal, a boutique winery in the Douro Valley. It was so much fun to stay at a quinta (or vineyard) where the grapes are grown and the wine is produced. In fact staying at a Douro Valley quinta was the perfect place for this Spaswinefood enthusiast. Quinta do Portal offers great accommodations (Casa das Pipas) and there is a gourmet restaurant right on the property. Moreover, little did we know when we booked Quinta do Portal that we would get to spend quality time with winemaker, Paulo Coutinho. During our stay we (1) dined with Quinta do Portal wines, (2) engaged in wine conversations and (3) toured the winery. Quinta do Portal also made appointments for us to explore other Douro Valley quintas, such as Sandeman's Quinta do Seixo and Froncesca's Quinta do Panascal. Quinta do Portal was our doorway to discovering Douro wines.
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| Quinta do Portal's Casa das Pipas, 2012 © Spaswinefood |
Needless to say while at Quinta do Portal we enjoyed great food and wines and fabulous hospitality. Now a few highlights from our Quinta do Portal wine experience.
Discovering Quinta do Portal Wines
We totally enjoyed our dining experiences at Quinta do Portal. Chef Milton Ferriera prepared gourmet meals that were paired with wines selected by winemaker, Paulo Continho. Quinta do Portal is know for its wine blends. It was also a great opportunity to get to know Douro Valley wines. Sure Spaswinefood had come for the port but learning about other Douro Valley wines was also exciting. Here are some of the Quinta do Portal wines that we were introduced to during our stay:
We often started a meal with Quinta do Portal's white wine, Colheita Branco DOC 2006. Colheita Branca is a blend of Rabigato, Gouveio, Malvasia Fina, Viosinho and Moscatel.
Rosé Wine
We were introduced to Quinta do Portal's Colheita Rosé DOC. Quinta do Portal's Colheita Rosé DOC is a blend of Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca.
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| Quinta do Portal Colheita Rosé DOC © Spaswinefood |
Red Wine
Quinta do Portal makes some amazing red wines. During our stay we sampled quite a few of their reds. Also during our winery tour we tasted red wines and ports.
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Wine tasting at Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood
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Moscatel and Late Harvest Wines
Quinta do Portal's Moscatel and Late Harvest wines were a special treat at desert time.
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| Quinta do Portal Late Harvest 2004 © Spaswinefood |
The Muscatels were a pleasant surprise for me.
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| Quinta do Portal Moscatel and Moscatel Reserva © Spaswinefood |
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| Quinta do Portal Moscatel Reserva (on the left) © Spaswinefood |
Port Wine
No Douro Valley dining experience is complete without some port and desert. We enjoyed the following:
1. Quinta do Portal Late Bottled Vintage Port 2003 and Vintage Port 2003
2. Quinta do Portal Extra Dry White Port and 10 Year Old Tawny Port
3. Quinta do Portal Porto Alegre 20 Year Old Tawny Port
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| Quinta do Portal Porto Alegre 20 Year Old Tawny Port © Spaswinefood |
4.Quinta do Portal Vintage Port 1995
Wine Conversations
During our stay we interacted with the winemaker over dinner and sometimes we talked after dinner. Often these conversations centered around the wines. Sure, some of the conversations focused on port but there were other wonderful wine discoveries.
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| Dining at Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood |
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| Dining at Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood |
Discovering a Potential Vintage Port
I remember an evening when we tasted a special port. For me it was an introduction to what makes a vintage port. Paulo offered a small group of us a number of ports to taste. Then he asked us the age of one port that we tasted. Of course I guessed and was absolutely wrong, except about the port's potential. Something about that port tasted very special to me. The port was only one week old. It was an amazing discovery of how potential vintage ports can be identified so young. Only time will tell if this port ages well enough to become a vintage.
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| Tasting a potential vintage port at Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood |
Touring the Winery and Tasting
One afternoon we had a special tour and tasting lead by Paulo. We began first with a tour of the winery. We started in the area with the grapes are crushed.
We checked out some fermenting grapes. Mid-October is just after the harvest and so there was lots to see.
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| Spaswinefood, Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood |
Onto the lab where we tasted some samples from the tanks.
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| Touring Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood |
The barrel room was our next stop.
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| Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood |
After the winery tour we sat down with Paulo to taste some red wines and ports.
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| Wine tasting at Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood |
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| Wine Tasting at Quinta do Portal © Spaswinefood |
The Red Wines
Paulo had carefully selected some wines for us to taste. We tasted the following red wines:
1. Quinta do Portal 2010 Colheita Tinto, a blend of Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca
2. Quinta do Portal 2009 Reserva, a blend of Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz and Touriga Franca
3. Quinta do Portal 2007 Grand Reserva, blend is mainly Touriga Nacional
4. Quinta do Portal 2009 Touriga Nacional, blend of the Douro's top varietal, Touriga Nacional
From the red wines the 2007 Grand Reserva and 2009 Touriga Nacional hit high marks for me.
The Ports
We did a side-by-side tasting of:
1. Quinta do Portal 2000 Porto Colheita and
2. Quinta do Portal 20 Year-Old Tawny
Then we did another side-by-side tasting of:
1. Quinta do Portal 2007 Late Bottled Vintage
2. Quinta do Portal 2009 Vintage
Amongst the ports who would not love the finish on the 20 Year-Old Tawny Port. Then the 2009 Vintage Port was my favorite.
Quinta do Portal is where you get quality time with the winemaker and an opportunity to learn about the wines. Staying at Quinta do Portal made our wine visit to the Douro Valley, Portugal super special. Spaswinefood was certainly excited to have visited the Douro Valley. I am so looking forward to more tasting and learning about all things port and Douro Valley wines. You will find more on my travels in Portugal and elsewhere at Spaswinefood.
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