QUINTA DE LA ROSA, Pinhão |
Single | 6+ | ||
| 2022 DOUROSA Douro Red | £17.95 | £16.45 | ||
| 2022 ESTATE RESERVE Douro Red | £21.95 | £20.95 | ||
| 2019 LATE BOTTLED VINTAGE PORT | £20.95 | £19.95 | ||
| 2009 VINTAGE PORT | £44.95 | £41.95 | ||
| ‘TONEL 12’ 10 YEAR OLD TAWNY 50cl | £24.95 | £22.95 | ||
This 60 hectare estate, superbly located in the upper reaches of the dramatic Douro valley, was bequeathed as a christening present to Claire, the grandmother of current owner Sophia Bergqvist, in 1906. During the 1990s Sophia’s enormously respected late father Tim was one of the early movers in the development of table wines to diversify the estate’s production, and the firm now has a solid reputation for its excellent premium table wines as well as a superb range of port wines. The estate is located close to the town of Pinhão in the favoured Cima Corgo region, with its steep terraced slopes, schist soils and dramatic views, and includes the majestically terraced Vale do Inferno, which rises 500m from the river bank. Above it lies the Lamelas vineyard, with its sweeping views across the valley. The estate’s vines are all classified category A, and comprise mainly the traditional Port wine varieties Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca and Tinto Roriz. The combination of varieties, soils and the full gamut of north-to-south topography gives fruit which provides the potential to make wines with both richness and body as well as minerality, acidity and freshness, and frames the distinctively dry, elegant and balanced style of both fortified and table wine for which the estate is recognised.
Winemaker Jorge Moreira has been at Quinta de la Rosa since 2002 and has helped to establish their reputation as one of Portugal’s leading wineries.
Table Wines
DOUROSA comes from younger vines, planted at altitude to ensure freshness. It is 35% Touriga Nacional, 35% Touriga Franca, and 30% Tinta Roriz, and is lightly extracted before fermentation and maturation stainless-steel vats. It is an easy drinking wine characterised by its freshness and generosity of ripe fruit.
La Rosa Estate Red is the most important wine in the collection, being the first wine that they produced in 1991. The majority of the grapes come from the Lamelas vineyard, planted by Tim Bergqvist more than 30 years ago, where the altitude and morning sun combine to ensure freshness. 50% Touriga Nacional, 30% Touriga Franca,15% Tinta Roriz, and 5% Sousão all from La Rosa’s estate. Matured for 12 months in mostly used French oak casks (70%). Although it is unmistakeably a Douro wine, the generous, ripe fruit is balanced by acidity to ensure freshness, making it extremely versatile.
Fortified Wines
The Late Bottled Vintage Port is an extremely high-quality port made from some of the best wines from 2018. The traditional port varieties tend to be sourced from parcels nearer the river with older vines and greater sun exposure. The LBV was foot trodden in granite lagares in the traditional manner before aging in large oak ‘tonels’ for 4 years, in which time it naturally sediments before bottling. It is dense and structured, but with wonderful fruit and vibrant tannins.
The Vintage 2009 is an extremely interesting wine, from a very good vintage port year. It has excellent texture, complexity and equilibrium. Tannins of the highest quality give a wonderful length. It’s starting to show hints of age but still has incredible structure and length. Drink now, or hold for years to come.
Ten Year Old Tawny ‘Tonel 12’ is named after the large barrel in which the Bergqvist family used to keep their family blend, the Tonel 12 Ten Year Old is steeped in history. Each year a small number of top-quality wines are specially chosen and set aside to be aged in old 550l oak pipes for around 10 years before being blended and bottled.