Port anD the Douro 105been devastated by phylloxera a decade earlier. A contemporary photograph in Vilarinho de
São Romão’s book Viticultura e Vinicultura illustrates the abandoned terraces. The railway
line that was built at the same time comes so close to the house that it feels as though the
early morning train were coming through the bedrooms! For many years Foz formed the
backbone of Cálem’s Vintage Ports, along with wines from the neighbouring Quinta do
Sagrado and Quinta do Vale da Figueira. At the time of writing this edition the Cálem
family had just sold the estate.
Quinta do Bomfim
5085 Pinhão
Grade a
Approached from the chaotic main street in Pinhão, Bomfim is something of an oasis and
certainly one of the most civilised of all quintas in the Douro. It occupies an enviable site,
facing south-west, and (with the exception of the upper part of the property) is not nearly as
steep as many vineyards in the Cima Corgo. The locality was known originally as Vale Bem
Feito (‘well-made valley’) but the Quinta do Bomfim (‘good end’) does not seem to have
had much of a history until it was bought for Silva & Cosens (Dow’s) by George Acheson
Warre in 1896. He clearly had foresight because Bomfim has subsequently become the
centre of Dow’s operations in the Douro. Warre built a modest but comfortable residence
at Bomfim, inspired by the tea-planters’ houses in Ceylon, and the shady verandah with
its view over the river continues to be one of my favourite places to enjoy a glass of chilled
twenty-year-old tawny. Port was made in lagares at Bomfim until the early 1960s when they
were phased out and replaced by autovinifiers. Wine from the property continues to form
the backbone of Dow’s solid vintage Ports, and is also produced as a single-quinta wine in
intervening years.
Quinta da Roêda
5085 Pinhão
Grade a
The vineyard at Roêda interlocks with Bomfim and enjoys a similar aspect and exposure.
The property belonged to the Fladgates (of Taylor, Fladgate & Yeatman fame) until it was
acquired by Croft in 1875. A colonial-style house similar in style to that at Bomfim was built
in the 1920s. Roêda went full circle in 2001 when Croft was bought by Taylor’s and is now
a key property in the Fladgate Partnership. The utilitarian 1970s winery overlooking the
river was built to withstand earthquakes, a very rare occurrence in the Douro. It continues
to serve as the principal vinification centre for both Croft and Delaforce and has been
subject to many improvements in recent years. Many of Roêda’s wines were disappointing
in the 1970s and 1980s, when it formed the backbone of Croft’s vintage Port as well as
single-quinta vintages. Much of the property has now been replanted and, under new
management, is producing some first-class wines.