Wine & Soul

Wine & Soul

Pinhao Valley, Cima Corgo, Douro Valley

September 2, 20113

Sandra Tavares da Silva, winemaker and vineyard caretaker of Pintas at Wine & Soul

     Wine & Soul was our first Quinta visit the morning after our arrival to the Douro Valley. I was very excited for this visit as I had done some reading on this small producer while researching our travel plans for this trip and was very impressed. Headed by winemaker Sandra Tavares da Silva and partnered with her husband winemaker Jorge Serôdio Borges (Quinta do Passadouro), Wine & Soul is tucked away in the Pinhao Valley with the main focus of their wines based on the 3 hectare Pintas Vineyard. Pintas is a gorgeous old vineyard with vines that are 70-80 years in age and are the source of a magnificent red wine and a Vintage Port. The Quinta itself has no vines on its property, however this is where the wines are made, aged in barrel and bottled. Production is small in the neighborhood of 50,000 bottles (or 4,000 cases).

If you have been reading my other writings on Portugal you already know 2011 is a spectacular vintage. We were lucky to taste the 20011s from Wine & Soul and they are spectacular. We even got a peak at the 2012 Pintas and Manoella VV out of barrel. In my opinion the 2011 Pintas red was the most exciting red wine we had our entire trip. This young wine was tight, but showed good intensity, full of verve and energy. The Pintas Vintage Port was sublime, complex and one of the best VP I have had to date from 2011. It was more wine-like as it seemed more reflective of terroir as there were streaks of earth and minerality that cut against the sweet black and blue fruits that finished off with a mint and herbal tinge - super cool stuff for sure!

Vale de Mendiz, the vineyards of Manoella part of the Wine & Soul production.

Sandra and Jorge also own Quinta da Manoella a few kilometers north of the Quinta. A much larger property at 70 hectares, Sandra mentioned she thinks the land making up Manoella was likely separate properties maintained by separate families over a century ago. There are hints to this theory all over the property. Many lagares were found on different sites of the property, leading one to think there were different owners as most owners only build lagares in one place on their property in their main building, not scattered all over the property. Olive trees bisect internal sections of the vineyards which is a traditional way in the Douro to mark your border with a neighboring property. Lastly, there were many different satellite Quinta-like buildings scattered about the entire property that could have passed for a main building in previous centuries. The property has been in Sandra and Jorge’s hands a few years and they are making progress each year, but a lot of work needs to be done to revive the old vines and buildings on the property. You can see the abandoned vineyards next to revived vineyards and see for yourself just how hard the work is to rebuild the schist terraces and then replant them with vines. I can see in 10 years Manoella being a magnificent estate when it’s up and running at full capacity.

The Quinta for Wine & Soul

Driving to Wine & Soul that morning I did not know it, but the Pinhao Valley is probably the most revered section of Cima Corga in the Douro Valley as many of the best properties and Port producers have vineyards there. On the way to Wine & Soul we passed the beautiful Quinta do Noval estate. We also drove by many vineyards owned by Taylor’s as seen from the signs near the top of the vineyards. When we arrived at Wine & Soul, Sandra was there to greet us and asked if we wanted to see the vineyards first to which we said absolutely. A tall and graceful woman, Sandra was in her past a volleyball player and a model. However it was her upbringing on a farm outside of Lisbon that inspired her to take up winemaking. You can read more about Sandra here (LINK).

Schict rock, just one of the examples of the type of top soil you see in the Douro vineyards: rocks

Pintas vineyard with schist rock scattered amongst the 30+ mixed grape varieties planted here. 

Sandra discussing the Pintas vineyard, its soil, geology and why there are 30+ mixed grape varietals planted there. 

Pinhao Valley from the top of the Pintas vineyard, a favorite photo of mine.

Pintas vineyard terracing.

We headed out to the Pintas vineyard which was a few minutes’ drive north of the Quinta. We hopped out of Sandra’s SUV and almost immediately your feet were embedded in thick fine dust that was easily an inch or more deep as we approached the vineyard from the top. The fine dust seemed to be decomposed schist as that is basically what every vineyard is planted in and what every terrace is made from in the Douro. As we made our way further down into the vineyard, the dust disappeared quickly as it seemed to collect there in the upper entrance of the vineyard. As we got down into terrace 2 and 3 there was no dust, but hard igneous schist and broken pieces of schist. There was little to no soil, this was it. I asked Sandra where the soil was and she said this is how it is in the Douro. This being the first vineyard we could walk through in the Douro, it was an eye-opener. These vines struggle to find water in the schist rock the vines live in, so the old vines thrive in a viticultural way producing few bunches of super complex fruit. By “thrive viticulturally”, I mean the vines are very stressed and actually do not thrive as they do not produce a lot of fruit. However, the fruit that is produced is very complex as that little bit of fruit gets all of the energy of the vine. In many parts of the world, this process is manipulated by hand cutting off bunches of grapes in what is called a “green harvest” which removes grape bunches from vines to manually drive more energy into fewer grape bunches. In the Douro the vines are actually stressed like crazy reaching 30-40 meters (100 feet!) into the solid rock to find pockets where rain water settles. Imagine planting a grape vine in a 100 foot deep block of fractured and splintered concrete because that is what it is like, crazy!

I learned some very important facts about diversity and age from my discussion with Sandra about the Pintas vineyard (and many other Douro vineyards). The grape varieties are 30+ different indigenous Portuguese grape varieties. The reason why they are all different is the farmers that originally planted these vines wanted to be sure they could get fruit in every vintage as some vines in their youth were less resistant to extremes and disease than others so by having many different varieties that have different resistances, the diversity allowed the farmers to harvest fruit at least every year. If you only planted 1 vine that was not resistant to extreme heat, if there were heat waves that vintage the entire crop could be lost and be disastrous for a farmers well being. With proper care and attention, these old vines grew older and even further resistant to weather extremes and disease. They are not invincible, but are much stronger when they are older as they have built up resistances to extreme conditions.

The sun shining over Manoella and its grand terraces.

A mortório , or ghost vineyard, where terracing remains but the vines are long gone and in some cases being readied for replanting.

"this is how it is in the Douro" the typical cross section of the schist rock vines are planted in the Douro Valley.

Quinta da Manoella in the midst of an upgrade for use as a wine making facility.

Manoella vineyards

Sandra schooling us on the old vines at Manoella that range in age from 100 to 120 years old. 

One of the small buildings scattered about Manoella

We got back in Sandra's SUV and drove a few more kilometers north to Manoella and started at the top of the property and made our way by SUV down into the heart of the property. As we switch-backed our way down steep and rocky roads, we stopped on the way by an old vine mixed varietal vineyard similar to Pintas. 30+ varieties are planted in this vineyard with the oldest vines being 100-120 years old. Still, they produce spectacular fruit as witnessed in the old vine bottling of Manoella. As we spoke, I was tapping into that passion that drives great winemakers like Sandra. Every great winemaker no matter where they are from has this passion. Our hands were flying in the air as we talked about the property, viticultural and winemaking practices, places where we have visited in the world where great wine is made, and what kinds of wines we drink. We hopped back in the SUV and headed to what will be a functioning Quinta soon after it is renovated so it can house wine production.  Sandra also mentioned how she wants to upgrade some of the other buildings on the property to host visitors to the Douro which I think is a fantastic idea and hope is realized by the time we make our way back.

I cannot recommend a visit to Wine & Soul more if you make it to the Douro or come across their wines in your wine shop. If you are so inspired, you can even find the wines here in the US on wine-searcher.com and have them shipped to your home as they are not easy to find, but fairly readily available in large markets like New York.

A Taransaud French oak barrel aging Pintas wine. 

Steel fermentation tanks 

Sandra discussing one of the wines, Lisa listening intently, me taking notes on my iPhone.

A better view of Wine & Soul's Quinta, with beautiful Pinhao Valley in the background.

We made our way back to the Wine & Soul Quinta and tasted through the range of wines Sandra had ready for us to taste. First she walked us through the two small sections of their Quinta where they had a lagare, fermentation tanks and a barrel room where we tasted the wines. Every one of the red wines is crushed by foot treading in the lagare tanks, a traditional method in Portugal for treatment of the best fruit from the vineyards. This was one of the most thorough tastings of the visit and very enjoyable as the wines were all excellent, complex and delicious. During the trip I kept wondering to myself why more people do not drink Douro wines and it all started here while tasting the Wine & Soul and Manoella wines.

2012 Guru Branco; 2011 Pintas Character red; 2011 Pintas red (flagship); 2011 Manoella & 2011 Manoella VV

2012 Guru White Douro Blend (Branco)

Bright and fresh, limes, lemons, apple and pear fruit emerge from a medium to full-bodied white that shows good oak integration and the mild treatment used to vinify this wine. One of my favorite whites the entire trip, the Guru is a world class white wine; the 2011 I had over a dinner one night reminded me of a good village or 1er Cru Meursault. Old vine field blend white wine; 5,000 bottles production; barrel fermentation takes place in 100% French oak ranging from neutral used barrels to light toast new French oak.

2011 Manoella Douro Red (Tinto)
Black licorice, blackberry, tobacco and spice, fine and ripe tannins, full bodied with an ample finish; Aged for 16 months in used barrels; a blend of 60% Touriga Nacional, 25% Touriga Franca, 10% Tinta Roriz and 5% Tinta Fracisca; fruit hails from the young vines 35 years in age; 10,000 bottles in annual production.

2011 Pintas Character Douro Red

Elegant but well structured with purple flowers, red cherry, black currant, blueberries, and spice; nice length and good tannic structure. This is no slouch and a baby so let this one decant for 2 hours. 30% of the wine is raised for 18 months in new French oak, the remaining goes into neutral oak for the same time. From 70 year old vines, this is one of the better second wines in the Douro.

2011 Pintas Douro Red (Tinto)
Super young and tight, the nose and palate reveal blueberry, blackberry, violets, crème d’cassis, and some subtle spice, a firm and profound structure with a round palate texture, acidity gives this good freshness and focus, great length on the long finish. If you love Bordeaux or great Rioja this needs to be in your collection immediately. This is the flagship wine made from the best grapes of the 70-80 year old vines of the Pintas vineyard. Pintas is approximately 5,000 bottles of annual production. 40% new French oak for 20 months, 60% in neutral oak for 20 months. This easily has 20+ years of aging potential.

2012 Pintas Douro Red (Tinto) – Barrel Sample
A purple-red robe this is fairly developed for 11 months of age. Black and purple notes dominate with a nice perfume of purple flowers and red and black fruits. The tannic structure at this time hints at having sweeter and finer tannins than the 2011 that has the structure of a skyscraper. It finishes pure and long, with good fruit, acids and tannin.

2011 Manoella VV Douro Red (Vinhas Velhas aka Old Vines)
A field blend of more than 20 indigenous grape varieties, the Manoella VV shows good terroir as this has an elegance and transparency facet coupled with good depth and concentration; 50% new oak for 20 months is well integrated as this wine soaks it up well; red and black fruits, leather, earth, spice and minerality. There is approximately 3,000 bottles in annual production and this wine hails from the first old vineyard we saw at Manoella.

2012 Manoella VV Douro Red – Barrel Sample

The youthful barrel sample of 2012 Manoella VV was also showing nicely for it youth. Earthy, with dried fruits, a dustiness persisted in the palate from the tannins, again there was this very transparency in the wine, showing well for the 2012 vintage which was not as successful as 2011.

2011 Pintas Vintage Port
Roasted herbal notes, minty even with black kirsch and anise spice, a very complex and layered vintage port (VP), Black and dark red fruits add to the spice and fan out over the palate with a striking texture that is more wine-like than Port. A long, silky, fruit and herb infused finish echoes for minutes on the palate. One of the best and most unique VPs for 2011 that I have tasted to date.

NV Wine & Soul 10 Year Tawny Port
A well balanced and texturally smooth 10 year tawny showing orange peel, creme caramel, spice and creme brulee; Medium bodied, this finishes really smooth and balanced for a 10 year tawny, I would guess at least a 20 year tawny blind.

A bientot,

Tom

Discovering Portugal - An Overview

Discovering Portugal 

An Overview

September 2013

Lisa & I standing above the Pintas vineyard overlooking one of the best site in the Douro Valley

Earlier this month we made our most recent trip to Europe. Our destination was Portugal to see the cities of Porto and Lisbon, as well as the wine regions of the Douro Valley and Alentejo. We decided on Portugal for a few reasons, initially we were drawn to the fact there are many new hotels focused specifically on wine tourism. Another reason was the relative affordability. Even with the Euro exchange rate higher than the Greenback, the relative affordability of the country was very favorable. Traveling to Portugal from New Jersey gave us the option to fly to and from either Porto or Lisbon. This allowed us to efficiently move to each destination without having to waste time going back to our starting place to fly home. That being said we flew to Porto, took the train to the Douro Valley, drove to Alentejo and drove again to our departure city of Lisbon.

The Abandonado vineyard at Alves de Sousa in the Douro Valley

Before planning for this trip, when I thought of Portugal, like I am sure many other wine enthusiasts do, I think immediately of Port wines. I am here to tell you that Portugal from a wine perspective is so much more than just Port wine. The Port wines are  fantastic, but the real discovery is in the amazing variety and high quality of the table wines. The really good stuff is available in the USA, but you have to seek it out. It’s not a hard search, just use wine-searcher.com if your local shop does not carry what you want. If all else fails there are many charming Douro or Alentejo regional wines that are a steal around $10-15. This series of writings on our journey through Portugal will help the reader discover many of these table wines as well as uncover new Port wines.


Part I – Porto

The Ponte Dona Maria (constructed by Gustave Eifel) connecting Porto to Villa Nova de Gaia

We flew overnight on a Friday so we would land on Saturday morning and enjoy the entire day with no further travel. We booked a tour guide for the first 3 parts of our trip and I can’t recommend more to do the same if you ever travel to Portugal. Miguel Leal, the CEO and founder of ML Private Tours, was our guide and met us at the gate when we arrived. Like any gentleman he took Lisa’s bags and led us to his sharp and sleek Audi A5 four door luxury sedan which would be our ride for the next 6 days. Little did we know at the time that Miguel would be a great new friend by the end of those 6 days.

The sun setting over Porto from our balcony at the Yeatman in Villa Nova de Gaia

We made our way through the main parts of Porto, visiting or driving by many of the sights in town and along the Douro River which led to the Atlantic Ocean not far down river and easily in sight. We took in many of the beautiful views as the banks of the Douro River rise gradually to higher elevations over the river in Porto. On the north side of the river is Vila Nova de Gaia where the Port lodges are located and where our fantastic hotel, The Yeatman, is located. But first, we stopped just across the road at the Port lodge Taylor Fladgate. There we enjoyed a tour and a private VIP tasting of all of the serious Port wines, including the much hyped 2011 vintage port. I would have liked another day or two to visit more Port lodges, but more importantly to enjoy the fantastic Yeatman hotel.

The decanter shaped infinity pool at The Yeatman, the Ponte Dona Maria and Porto in the background

Part II – The Douro Valley

Above the Douro river looking west towards Pinhoa, the heart of the Douro Valley

The following day on Sunday morning we hopped on a train headed to the Douro Valley. Our stop was in Regua 2 hours east, but you can take the train further up valley past the sleepy town of Pinhao, which is the heart of the Douro Valley. The train itself rides along the Douro River after about an hour allowing for beautiful views of the rolling hills, vineyards, and picturesque villages perched on top of the hills.

The Hotel at Quinta do Vallado (right), our home base for our stay in the Douro Valley

When we arrived in Regua, we grabbed a taxi to our home for the next 3 days at the Hotel at Quinta do Vallado. We checked in quickly and made our way to the wine tour scheduled for that late morning. Later in the afternoon we made our way to Pinhao for a boat cruise up the Douro River where we saw the true beauty and splendor of the Douro Valley from the river. We made our way a few miles up-river, sipping Port, taking pictures and absorbing the gorgeous scenery the whole way. Later that evening we enjoyed a spectacular meal at DOC. There we sampled a wide variety of Portuguese wines that were paired with each course of our testing menu that was locally sourced and influenced.

My favorite photo of the trip taken with an iPhone above the Pintas Vineyard in the Douro Valley

The next morning we rose early for a full day of wine and jaw-dropping vineyard tours starting at Wine & Soul, Quinta do Portal for lunch, and then finally at the gorgeous Quinta do Crasto to finish the days’ wine festivities. On our last full day we enjoyed the wines of Van Zeller and Quinta Vale D. Maria in the morning, tasting their exceptional wines and getting a tour of their facilities. For lunch we stopped at the amazing Castas e Pratos in Regua on our way to our afternoon appointment at Alves de Sousa where we had a phenomenal tour of the Alves de Sousa vineyards, visiting the vineyards high above the valley floor. After the tour we tasted through their exceptional wines. Later that evening we had dinner back at Quinta do Crasto with a selection of some of their best wines with our friends Miguel and Andrea of Quinta do Crasto. What an unforgettable 3 days, we were already panning our trip back!

In the infinity pool at the fantastic Quinta do Crasto before dinner there at the Quinta on our last evening in the Douro 

Part III – Alentejo

The vineyards at Herdade do Esporao in Alentejo

Sad to leave the Douro but excited for Alentejo, we departed Wednesday morning heading south and then east to Alentejo in the far southeast part of the country. We cut the drive in half with a stop at Fatima for lunch. Fatima is famous for 2 things. The first being a holy site of the Roman Catholic Church where 3 local children witnessed revelations of the Virgin Mary’s spirit in 1917. The second is Tia Alice, a local restaurant serving some of the country’s best versions of classical Portuguese dishes like Acorda.

Lunch at Tia Alice in Fatima

We arrived at our wine hotel L’and and were ready for some pool time to relax the remainder of the afternoon and then the early evening in our spacious skysuite. We later had dinner at L’and and had a delicious and relaxing meal.

The beautiful new wine hotel L'and was our home in Alentejo.

The following Thursday morning we rose early to make our way to wine and vineyard tours at Cartuxa and Esporao where we also had a spectacular lunch. Later that evening we had my favorite regional dinner at Sao Rosas in Estromez. 

Part IV – Lisbon

High above Lisbon from the Castelo de Sao Jorge

Friday morning we rose early one more time to make our way west to our last stop in Lisbon. On our way to Lisbon we stopped in the Setabul wine region to tour the wine cellars and wine making facilities at Jose Maria de Fonseca, make cheese at a local cheese producer, and enjoy a fantastic lunch at a local spot serving a mixed grill mix of meats, fish and vegetables.

The original family home at the winery Jose Maria de Fonseca in Setabul.

In Lisbon we parted ways with our good friend and guide Miguel. Miguel is a consummate professional, a passionate Portuguese who loves his country, a fantastic guide and a great companion on the road. The trip would definitely not have been as good without him and his expertise. We had a private tour at almost every location we stopped at with our own interpreter (where needed, which was not much in the north), how can one ask for anything better?

The 25 de Abril Bridge spanning the Tejo river from Lisbon, with Jesus overlooking from Almada south of Lisbon.

Lisbon was great, but not what I was expecting. I was expecting a city that was cleaner and more elegant, though it is very cosmopolitan with a certain charm that is very European. It is a gritty city plastered with graffiti in the midst of a strangling rate of unemployment amidst this latest stage of the great global recession. There are however many beautiful pockets of the city. The Alfama district where Fado, the musical soul of the city, calls home was a beautiful part of the city. Small and delicious restaurants are tucked into random nooks in the streets and alleys. In Lisbon there are many of your standard museums and monuments, as well as a huge castle at the highest point of the city, a look-alike of the Golden Gate Bride of San Francisco, as well as a giant Jesus statue like the one in Rio de Janeiro. We saw most of these in passing or on foot and enjoyed our remaining days in Lisbon before we flew home. We ate our way through some of the best restaurants in Lisbon such as Assintura, Alma, and 100 Maneiras.

Padrão dos Descobrimentos (Monument to the Discoveries) in Belem, Portugal.

We enjoyed our journey of discovery in Portugal and can’t wait to get back. We want to head deeper into the Douro, stay longer in Port, and maybe check out other wine regions like the Dao, Vinho Verde or the island of Madeira. We also want to head back to Alentejo for a longer stay and then hit the southern coast beaches.

I can’t recommend Portugal more if you are looking to get to Europe, not only for its value or because of the great wine and food, but for the warm and friendly people that make this a special place to visit and make new friends.



A bientot!



-Tom