Best Wineries in Douro Valley
When we are looking to visit the city of Porto, we can never fail to visit the famous region of the Douro valley and its wineries.
Just over an hour’s drive away, you will find many wineries that can provide you with an excellent sightseeing and wine tasting experience.
Discover with us some of the best wineries in the Douro valley that you can visit with us or on your own.
Quinta da Roêda - Pinhão
For an authentic vineyard experience, visit Croft’s famous estate, Quinta da Roêda, in Pinhão, in the heart of the Douro Valley.
The visitors’ centre is housed in the former stables of Quinta da Roêda, which have been carefully restored in the traditional style of the Douro. This generous is the perfect setting to taste the famous Croft Port wines gives you the opportunity to browse in the shop for local products, such as the extra virgin olive oil from Quinta da Roêda.
Discover the vineyards of Quinta da Roêda as you take a guided tour, stopping at key points of interest in the property and taking in the incredible landscape and splendour of the property.
Address: N323, 5085-036 Pinhão
Quinta do Panascal
vineyards have probably been established at Panascal since the early 19th century, it was not until relatively recently that these formed a property of significant size. The Viscount of Vila Maior, the great 19th century authority on the vineyards of the Douro, mentions that in 1869 the area contained five parcels of land belonging to individual grape growers. These fell into disrepair after the ravages of Phylloxera, which destroyed many of the Douro vineyards in the 1860s and 70s, and at some point early in the 20th century they were amalgamated into a single large estate known as Quinta do Panascal.
By the middle of the 20th century the quinta had become the property of Colonel José Pacheco, member of a prominent family of Douro landowners, and it was from the Pacheco family that Fonseca purchased the estate in 1978.
Unlike the Pinhão Valley estates of Cruzeiro and Santo António, both of which had a long historical association with the firm, Panascal had not traditionally been a supplier of Fonseca. However the firm was aware of the estate’s outstanding reputation and saw an opportunity to convert this prime location into a new technically advanced vineyard producing wines suited to the Fonseca house style.
A number of factors combine to make Panascal an exceptional vineyard site. Its broad sweeping west and southwest facing aspect mean that the whole vineyard is well exposed to sunlight. The vines on the steep lower slopes bordering the Távora River are wrapped in the still warm air enclosed between the sheer sides of the narrow valley. In this area, known as the Torrão, the wines are dense, velvety and luscious, with powerful dark fruitiness interlaced with flavours of liquorice and chocolate. On the upper elevations which rise to about 400 metres above sea level, the slope is gentler and the vines are cooled by the wind, producing more elegant wines, finely scented and with a vibrant acidity. These different elevations allow the property to produce wines with the combination of rich, luscious fruitiness and aromatic complexity which is the cornerstone of the Fonseca house style.
Quinta do Panascal is now Fonseca’s flagship estate. As well as being an important contributor to the blends of the classic Fonseca Vintage Ports, for over thirty years Quinta do Panascal has also produced distinctive single estate Vintage Ports made exclusively from the best produce of the property. As well as being shipped to markets around the world, these wines can also be purchased in the estate’s shop. Visitors are welcome at Panascal throughout the year for a tour of its vineyards or to watch the wine making during harvest time.
Address: N222, 5120-496 Valença do Douro
Quinta do Cume
The Quinta do Cume wines were born on the slopes of the ancient land of Provezende, a historic village on the right bank of the Douro River in the heart of the Douro wine region, demarcated region, classified by UNESCO as World Heritage..
Jorge Tenreiro, a surgeon by profession, has always been passionate about the Douro. Provezende was chosen for the accomplishment of a dream, which brought together all the needed features for a great wine: The rugged terrain, schist soil, proximity to the water, sun exposure and ideal altitude, finally, a terroir that gives the wine unique oenological properties. Our main objective is to produce high quality wines.
The newly built winery allows us to use all the latest technology.
The decisive choice fell on the winemaker Jean-Hugues Gros, whose training in one of the most reputed schools of oenology in Burgundy in France, which made this dream possible.
Jean-Hugues Gros, aged 44, made his learning process in various wine producing regions of the world. In 1999 the Douro was chosen to develop his professional activity. Our motto is to produce wines with passion.
Adress: Quinta do Cume
5060-261 Provesende, Sabrosa, Portugal
Quinta do Val Moreira
It is one of the oldest demarcated regions in the history of wine, with more than 250 years. It is located in the northeast of Portuguese territory and runs along the Douro River valley.
Located on the south bank of the Douro River, in Cima-Corgo, Quinta do Val Moreira was purchased by XVINUS in 2018 and requalified for wine tourism. It has 23 hectares dedicated to the production of Douro wines, 2 hectares of olive groves and 2 hectares of almond groves. It offers a fantastic view over the valley, where the Douro River and the Tedo River are protagonists.
Quinta do Val Moreira is on an old map from the 19th century, the Barão de Forrester map. An unavoidable figure in the Douro Wine Region, he had the dream of making the Douro river navigable and safe up to the border with Spain. This map earned him a reputation as a cartographer and the title of Baron.
Today, the farm develops from the north side of Marmelal, a very old village, whose charter of D. Sancho I dates from 1194. This royal document included our main vineyards and land facing the Tedo and the Quintas of Naples and of the Rail.
Part of our vineyards is located in another tributary valley of the Douro, which had one of the largest water lines between Marmelal and Folgosa. These vineyards are adjacent to the ruins of the old house of “Quinta de Valmor”, which may have belonged to the Viscount of Valmor, where he was awarded the prestigious Lisbon and Portuguese architectural prize.
There are two Pombaline landmarks in the area, one of them close to the small village of Marmelal, Quinta do Val Moreira and Ribeiro do Carril. These granite landmarks are classified as properties of public interest. Built by the Marquis of Pombal in 1757, they were used to demarcate the Douro fortified wines area, placed under the jurisdiction of the Companhia Geral da Agricultura das Vinhas do Douro. The world’s first demarcated wine region was thus created, a historical fact that the people of Douro are very proud of.
Quinta das Carvalhas
Quinta das Carvalhas is one of the most emblematic and spectacular properties in the Douro valley. Written references regarding this magnificent vineyard can be traced back to 1759.
Enjoying a prominent position on the left bank of the Douro river, in Pinhão, the estate covers the entire hillside facing the Douro river and occupies part of the slopes of the right bank of the tributary Torto river.
Carvalhas’ old vines, are a post-phylloxera plantation, which have reached the respectful age of a century old and represent one of the richest selection of ancient indigenous Douro varieties.
The quinta dates back to the beginning of the 18th century as property of the influential Castro and Sande family from São João da Pesqueira. In the following years, Carvalhas sees an exchange of proprietorship up until 1881 when it is bought by Miguel de Sousa Guedes. As one of the most important Port bottlers of his time, Sousa Guedes, began a rescue program to replant the vineyards and reinstate the quinta’s reputation, after the philoxera ravages that left the estate in a truly decadant state.
In 1953, Manuel da Silva Reis acquired Miguel de Sousa Guedes & Irmão Lda. becoming proprietor of Quinta das Carvalhas, one of the largest estates of the Douro, being today Real Companhia Velha’s most important property.
Quinta do Tedo
Quinta do Tedo has a Single Quinta classification, the Portuguese equivalent of a Single Estate, Domaine or Azienda. Our 100% estate-grown organic grapes come from our 37 acres of class “A” vineyards, the highest rating from the Portuguese Instituto do Vinhos do Douro e Porto, comparable to France’s Grand Cru. Less than 2% of Douro Valley appellation’s rough 100,000 acres are class “A”. This rating is subject to soil make-up, vineyard exposure, grape variety, vine spacing and altitude, to list only a couple of the 24 criteria considered.
The Quinta is located at the confluence of the Douro and Tedo rivers. Large, carved granite feitoria stones mark the landscape like sentries. These were placed by the Marquis de Pombal during the original Douro appellation demarcation in 1756.
Historically, only wine coming from the feitoria demarcation area, was considered to be the finest quality, and received authorization for export.
Today, Quinta do Tedo’s “A” classification and location within the feitoria limits prove its great potential as a Single Quinta label.
Quinta de La Rosa
The terroir in the Douro offers incredible opportunity. None more so than La Rosa’s whose ideal location a mere 2km from Pinhão in the epicentre of the Cima Corgo sub-region, is home to some of the region’s finest vineyards. They rise dramatically out of the river with the imposing Vale do Inferno vineyard and climb majestically up to an altitude of 400m with Lamelas, whose magnificent views overlook the very heart of the region. The estate’s grapes are all category A – the very best the Douro has to offer.
LA ROSA
The 62 hectares of vine are perfectly nestled on the north bank of the river and have been systematically replanted to ensure optimal balance and complexity. The morning sun, along with the schist soils and extremely varied topography give each vineyard their own distinct characteristics that enable our rich, full bodied wines to have remarkable acidity, minerality, and freshness. And it is this for which La Rosa has become renown; elegant wines that express terroir in bottle with out too much extraction, tannin, or oak.
PRODUCTION
The vast majority of our production is red wine and port. However, in recent years Douro whites have really come into focus and have grown in stature. La Rosa’s whites are characterised by their remarkable freshness and minerality that belie the valley’s extreme heat. Going forward we are committed to continuous experimentation and improvement of our whites, as a result, in 2019 we replanted 2.3 hectares of Cerejinha vineyard with Alvarinho, Arinto and, Gouveio.
Quinta da Pacheca
Among the valleys of the Douro River, near the left bank, in the village of Cambres, Lamego county, in the heart of the first Pombaline demarcation of the Region, is Quinta da Pacheca, one of the most prestigious and recognized properties in the Douro Demarcated Region. The history of the vineyard in this property dates back to the XVI century when it was a collection of vines that belonged to the Monasteries of Salzedas and St. João de Tarouca, as referred to in a document dating 1551. The estate is mentioned for the first time in a document dat- ed from April 1738 where it is referred to as “Pacheca”, a feminine form of the family name Pacheco for being owned for a lady, Da. Mariana Pacheco Pereira, an im- posing woman who took care of the property by herself. One of the Pombaline landmarks remaining that were first used in 1758 to outline this first ever Demarcated Wine Region in the world by the Marquês de Pombal, is still preserved inside Quinta da Pacheca, right at the main entrance to the traditional stone tanks. These granitic stone marks were declared property of national interest in the 1940s. It was in 1903 that D. José Freire de Serpa Pimentel bought the property and began to work on the modernization of the vineyard and structures among which are eight granite stone tanks where red wines from Pacheca are still vinified, resulting in limited annual productions of special categories Douro DOC wines and Port wines.
With around 75 hectares of own vineyards planted in the Humanity World Heritage, classified by UNESCO in 2001, Quinta da Pacheca has always been focused in the pro- duction of quality Douro DOC and Port wines and was one of the first in the region to bottle DOC wines under its own brand. It was in 1977 that the commercialization of DOC wines with the brands of Quinta da Pacheca and Quinta de Vale Abraão started, which vineyards still be- longs to Quinta da Pacheca today, under the leadership of the pioneer D. Eduardo Mendia Freire de Serpa Pimen- tel who was the first in Portugal to produce white wines from Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling and Gewurztraminer. Nowadays, Serpa Pimentel family continues involved in the project with the fourth generation of the family. In 1995 Quinta da Pacheca officially began its project in wine tourism opening its doors for guided tours to the property and sale of its wines in Quinta’s store. The con- cept was developed over the years with other activities of relevant wine tourism interest and resulted with the opening of The Wine House Hotel Quinta da Pacheca in 2009, thus exploring another form of business and con- tributing to broaden the tourism offer in an increasingly sought region and recognized as a destination of excellence.
Quinta do Panascal
It is one of the oldest demarcated regions in the history of wine, with more than 250 years. It is located in the northeast of Portuguese territory and runs along the Douro River valley.
Located on the south bank of the Douro River, in Cima-Corgo, Quinta do VO, at the northern end of the Távora River, where its valley spreads out before joining the Douro River, about 4 kilometers west of the town of Pinhão, has been considered as the origin of the best Port wines. Especially the award-winning wines from a special hillside, located on the right bank of the Távora, in the parish of Valença do Douro, known as Panascal.
The site was named after the clumps of Panasco, the undergrowth Dactylis glomerata, which proliferated throughout the slope. The fame of this area is told in the words of an old saying: “From Roncão and Panascal come the best wines of Portugal”.
Although it is believed that the Panascal vineyards have been cultivated there since the beginning of the 19th century, it is only relatively recently that they have become a property of significant size. The Viscount of Vila Maior, a great authority in the 19th century on the Douro vineyards, mentions that in 1869 the area contained five plots of land belonging to private winegrowers. These fell into disrepair after the devastation caused by phylloxera, which destroyed many of the Douro vineyards between the 1860s and 70s until, at the beginning of the 20th century, they were reunited in a single larger property known as Quinta do Panascal.
In the mid-20th century, the farm had been acquired by Colonel José Pacheco, a member of a prominent family of Douro owners, and it was precisely from the Pacheco family that Fonseca bought the property in 1978.
Quinta Nova
With a history spanning over 200 years, Quinta Nova de Nossa Senhora do Carmo occupies over 120 ha of land, and has been listed since the first demarcation of the Douro wine region, in 1756, during the Pombaline era.
The original wine cellar that dates back to 1764 and the 19th century manor house with a chapel (1765) are harmoniously integrated into one of the estate’s hills.
Owned by the Portuguese Royal Family until 1725, it became a “new estate” when two estates were merged. Several Portuguese families lived in the estate in the 18th and 19th centuries, during an important period in the agriculture of the Douro, and gave life to the vineyards and wine, fruit orchards, water mills built along the stream that runs through the estate and the old olive grove.
Quinta do Seixo
Set in a prime location in Cima-Corgo, on the south bank of the Douro river, between the city of Régua and the village of Pinhão, Quinta do Seixo, with its 100 hectares, is undoubtedly one of the most traditional and grand wine-producing estates in the Douro Region.
A fantastic view of the Douro river, a “widescreen” panorama of light and colours that change throughout the year, illustrating one of the Douro Region’s most beautiful picture-perfect estates.
Quinta do Seixo established itself as Sandeman’s calling card in the Douro Region, with the image of the Sandeman Don, the mysterious figure with a Portuguese student’s cape and a Jerez sombrero, designed by Scotsman George Massiot Brown in 1928, taking center stage.
On a stroll amidst the estate’s hundred-year-old vines or whilst cherishing a glass of Porto by the fireplace, enjoy the unique view that Quinta do Seixo has to offer over one of the most beautiful landscapes in Portugal and indeed the entire world.
