Douro wines 259potential in Douro wines when they made their first in 1990. Baverstock moved the Alentejo
and has been replaced as winemaker by Jorge Moreira, formerly of Real Companhia Velha,
who also produces his own wine, Poeira. La Rosa’s reds have gained enormously in stature over
the past decade and are good across the range. In particularly successful years a small quantity
of wine is kept back and bottled as a Reserva which combines intensity with a certain elegance
and finesse. The 2009 Reserva came top in a tasting of over 250 Douro reds organised by
Decanter magazine in 2011. Rosa also produce a soft, barrel-fermented white from Gouveio,
Rabigato and Malvasia Fina. The Bergqvists’ commitment to Douro wines is displayed by
their investment in a new adega and an air-conditioned cellar for both barrels and bottles.
sogrape
Sogrape Vinhos SA
aldeia nova, 4430-801, avintes, Vila nova de Gaia
tel. (351) 227 838 104
http://www.sograpevinhos.eu
Portugal’s largest winemaking concern, owners of Sandeman, Ferreira and Offley Port
shippers with interests throughout the country and in South America, began life in the
Douro. The Sogrape winery at Vila Real was originally constructed in the 1950s to produce
Mateus Rosé from grapes growing in small vineyards on the surrounding altos. Production
of Mateus has gradually shifted away from the Douro, and the Vila Real plant (not much
more than a stone’s throw from the famous Mateus Palace) has been thoroughly updated
to make the most of the grapes growing on the northern margins of the Douro region.
Sogrape’s diversification began with the revival of the Planalto, a crisp blend of Viosinho,
Malvasia Fina and Gouveio from the high plains above the Douro. Apart from Pena do
Pato, a well-made bright juicy red, most of Sogrape’s Douro wines are now produced under
the Ferreira banner (see above).
symington Family estates
travessa Barão de Forrester 86, 4431 – 901 Vila nova de Gaia
tel. (351) 223 776 300
http://www.symington.com
One of the biggest names in the Port business turned to producing Douro wines in 1999.
The Symington family, owners of Cockburn, Dow, Graham and Warre (among others), are
now producing a wide range of different Douro wines. The main brand is Altano, named
after the warm, evening winds that blow through the Douro Valley. Mostly sourced from
Vilariça in the Douro Superior, Altano is an easy going mid-weight red with attractive
Douro fruit, tempered by a touch of oak. There is also Altano Organic which is made in a
similar style but has a little more weight and grip. Altano Reserva is an altogether bigger,
more serious wine, sourced some of the Symington’s prime vineyards in the Cima Corgo and
Douro Superior and aged for twelve months in French oak. There is also an Altano Branco,
a mouthwateringly fresh dry white with a touch of Moscatel made from fruit grown on the
high margins of the Douro at Peter Symington’s Quinta da Fonte Branca near Lamego. The