Day 7 – Saturday

Quinta do Bom Retiro

Our last day in the Douro, and Roy certainly saved one of the best treats for last. We were headed to Quinta do Bom Retiro, one of the main properties of Casa Ramos Pinto, who acquired it in 1919. It is a beautiful property that retains the feeling of an old, historic Quinta.

Our visit was a special visit because our good friend, João Nicolau de Almeida, Managing Director and Head Winemaker at Ramos Pinto was retiring.

João is a singular individual and has left an indelible mark on the Portuguese wine industry. With his uncle José Ramos Pinto Rosas, João researched the 80+ grape varietals in the Douro region, recommending that producers concentrate on five red grape varietals that would produce excellent Port and red wines: Touriga Francesa, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, Tinta Cão and Tinta Barroca. Port lovers will recognize these as the cornerstone varieties for most Port wines produced today.

Under João, Ramos Pinto was also the first to employ the use of patamares (horizontal terraces with widely spaces vines), the first to employ vertical planting in the Douro, and he also lays claim to being the first to employ block planting in the Douro.

For this work, he received the For The Love Of Port’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014.

João came out to greet us as we arrived at Quinta do Bom Retiro, and it was a joy to see him again.

When we walked into the house, I took one look at the wines on the table and knew this was going to be an incredible day. João began discussing the tasting that he had prepared for us, which included not only some almost-unheard-of comparative tastings of single varietal Vintage Ports, but component tastings and some red and white Douro wines.

2000 Ramos Pinto Duas Quinta Douro White – Golden straw in color. Tropical fruit with a touch of Riesling / petrol character. Dry in character with some grapefruit and minerality on the palate. A well-integrated, impressively aged wine. 91 points. 10/3/2015

2013 Ramos Pinto Duas Quinta Douro Red Wine – Medium purple in color. Subtle red fruit and herbal notes on the nose. Dry in style. Still some pronounced tannins on the mid-palate. Long, dusty finish. 92 points. 10/3/2015

 1994 Ramos Pinto Duas Quinta Reserve Douro Red Wine – Herbal notes on the nose. Touch of green pepper on the palate. Great structure on the medium-long finish. A great, elegant wine. 93 points. 10/3/2015

1981 Ramos Pinto Quinta do Bom Retiro Tinta Cão Douro Red – Bottled in 1984. Great dusty nose. Red fruit is starting to recede, replaced by dusty tannins. Nice long finish on this very rare Douro red from the Tinta Cão grape. 91 points. 10/3/2015

2015 Ramos Pinto Quinta do Bom Retiro Touriga Nacional Douro Red – Lagar sample. There is a slightly funky nose on this wine like the tankiness of the stone lagar. Tannins are surprisingly subdued on this wine, but great underlying structure. N/R. 10/3/2015

2015 Ramos Pinto Tinta Barroca Douro Red – Lagar sample. N/R. 10/3/2015
2015 Ramos Pinto Touriga Franca Douro Red – Lagar sample. N/R. 10/3/2015

1983 Ramos Pinto Vintage Port – Amber-purple in color. Dusty, dark cherry on teh nose with some underlying herbs. Full, rich mouthfeel with cola, mahogany, and mocha. Very long finish with waves of chocolate. 94 points. 10/3/2015

1983 Ramos Pinto Touriga Francesa Vintage Port – A touch of saline (low tide) on the nose. Tremendous viscosity and silky texture on the palate. Unctuous mouthfeel. Very long finish. Really great wine! 93 points. 10/3/2015

1983 Ramos Pinto Tinta Barroca Vintage Port. Dark, impenetrable purple in color. Esteva on the nose. Red fruit and cinnamon on the palate. Great long finish. 91 points. 10/3/2015

1983 Ramos Pinto Touriga Nacional Vintage Port. Mint and herbal notes on the nose. Great intensity of flavor with some pepper and dark fruit on the palate. Very long, unctuous finish. 92 points. 10/3/2015

1983 Ramos Pinto Tinta Roriz Vintage Port. Surprisingly light, clear amber in color. Red fruit with strawberry on the palate. Sweet, unctuous finish. 92 points. 10/3/2015

1994 Ramos Pinto Vintage Port. Medium purple in color. Eucalyptus on the nose. Red fruit and well-structured tannins. Long finish with a nice balance. 92 points. 10/3/2015

1994 Ramos Pinto Quinta de Ervamoira Vintage Port. Opaque purple in color. Menthol and licorice on the nose. Plum and blueberry on the palate. Long, elegant and balanced finish. 93 points. 10/3/2015

2015 Single Varietal “VP” Vintage Port Tastings

• 2015 Ramos Pinto VP Tinta Roriz Vintage Port – N/R. 10/3/2015
• 2015 Ramos Pinto VP Touriga Franca Vintage Port – N/R. 10/3/2015
• 2015 Ramos Pinto VP Tinta Barroca Vintage Port – N/R. 10/3/2015
• 2015 Ramos Pinto VP Touriga Nacional Vintage Port – N/R. 10/3/2015
• 2015 Ramos Pinto VP Tinta Cao Vintage Port – N/R. 10/3/2015

2015 “VC” Single Varietal Port Tastings

• 2015 Ramos Pinto VC Tinta da Barca Vintage Port – N/R. 10/3/2015
• 2015 Ramos Pinto VC Touriga Franca Vintage Port – N/R. 10/3/2015
• 2015 Ramos Pinto VC Touriga Nacional Vintage Port – N/R. 10/3/2015

2015 Ramos Pinto VP Tonel-7 Vintage Port– N/R. 10/3/2015

After we finished the main tasting, my head was really spinning. Not because of the amount of wines we had just tasted, but because of the incredible intellectual education of being able to taste a Vintage Port, and then taste Vintage Ports made from each of the grape varietals that went into that Vintage Port. It was like deconstructing the ingredients in your mother’s secret brownie recipe. Mind. Blown.

The group adjourned to the courtyard, where João popped a few bottles of celebratory Champagne. We toasted to his retirement and mingled in the courtyard discussing the wines and the experience we were having at Quinta do Bom Retiro.

Finally, it was on to lunch, where we sampled a few more Ramos Pinto wines and Ports.

2014 Duas Quintas Reserve Douro Red Wine 10/3/2015

2013 Duas Quintas Douro 10/3/2015

For the grand finale, we tasted a Ramos Pinto 20-Year-Old Tawny Port, a 1924 Ramos Pinto Vintage Port, and an 1890 Ramos Pinto Selected Reserve Port that one of the guests on the tour had brought to share with João.

1890 Ramos Pinto Selected Reserve Port – Brown orange in color with some transparency. Crazy acidity with mahogany, maple and citrus peel on the nose. Unctuous mouthfeel with burnt sugar, mocha, tobacco, and espresso notes. 93 points. 10/3/2015

1924 Ramos Pinto Vintage Port – Vegetative green notes on the nose. Unctuous toffee and buttery caramel with some orange peel notes. Great unctuous mouthfeel with great acidity and a nice long finish. 94 points. 10/3/2015

Ramos Pinto “RP20” 20 Year Old Tawny Port – Orange amber in color. Coffee and orange spice on the nose. Great acidity with orange notes on the palate. Long finish. 92 points. 10/3/2015

 

Pedro Lemos

We said our farewells to João, wishing him the best as he heads into his retirement, and we headed back to Porto. The final dinner of the trip is always a treat, and this one was no exception. We headed to Pedro Lemos, a restaurant that never disappoints.

Pedro Lemos opened in 2009 in the Foz neighborhood of Porto. The restaurant earned it’s Michelin star in 2014, and serves traditional dishes with a modern sensibility, all inspired by both the sea and the land of Portugal. 

We sat and recounted our favorite moments from the trip, enjoyed many bottles of (mostly non-Port wine), and dined until late on Pedro’s masterful creations.

 

And as we headed back to the hotel, tired and smiling, another remarkable For The Love Of Port Harvest tour was in the books.