Quinta Nova de Nossa Senhora do Carmo is a place of extreme beauty, in the heart of the Douro, and owned by the Amorim family since 1999.
The family's connection to wine goes back a long way, through its connection to the exporting houses of Vila Nova de Gaia, through the cork business, but on that date this connection resulted in the realization of a dream and the project is today in the hands of the 4th generation of the family.
With a history of over 250 years, the farm has a preserved design and the original cellar building from 1764, following interventions carried out by Architect Arnaldo Barbosa.
But the farm dates back much earlier than 1764 and history confirms it as a large land belonging to the Portuguese Royal House, with its first owner being identified in 1725. The winery produced more than 3,500 barrels of wine, from neighboring plots and farms, having was soon “integrated into the first demarcation of the region”. The historical sites that are still preserved today reveal all this historical weight.
The family's entrepreneurial and visionary spirit made the difference, however, as, combined with a passionate commitment to the future, they determined the beginning of multiple changes towards a path of oenological excellence.
With a privileged location in the Douro Demarcated Region, in the North of Portugal, Quinta do Crasto has been owned by the family of Leonor and Jorge Roquette for over a century. Like the great Quintas do Douro, the origins of Quinta do Crasto date back to distant times in the country's history: the name Crasto derives from the Latin castrum and means “Roman fort”.
The first known records referring to Quinta do Crasto and its wine production date back to 1615, and it was later included in the first Feitoria, together with the most important Quintas in the Douro. Between 1758 and 1761, the Marquis of Pombal had 335 markers installed in the Douro – granite stones two meters high, 30 centimeters wide and 20 centimeters thick – to delimit what would be the first demarcated wine region in the world. A Pombaline landmark, dated 1758, can be seen at Quinta do Crasto next to the century-old house. This, like the other Pombaline landmarks listed, were classified in the 40s of the last century as properties of national public interest.
At the beginning of the 20th century, Quinta do Crasto was acquired by Constantino de Almeida, founder of the Constantino brand and wine house, which became famous for the production and export of Port Wine and also Brandy, and whose advertising slogan «The fame of Constantino has been around for a long time” continues to this day. In 1923, after the death of Constantino de Almeida, it was his son Fernando Moreira d’Almeida who remained in charge of the management of Quinta do Crasto, continuing the production of the highest quality Port Wine.
In 1981, Leonor Roquette, daughter of Fernando Moreira d'Almeida, and her husband Jorge Roquette took over the majority of the capital and management of the property and, with the help of their children, began the process of remodeling and extending the vineyards, as well as the project to produce Douro Wines with Controlled Denomination of Origin (DOC), for which Quinta do Crasto is widely known, nationally and internationally. This is the fourth generation of the family leading the management of this emblematic farm that seduces everyone with the quality it insists on imprinting on all its products.
Quinta do Crasto today has a very complete range of products, from white and red Douro Wines, Port Wines of special categories and Extra Virgin Olive Oils, with different price levels, essentially positioning itself in the premium and super premium ranges. Over the last few years, all Quinta do Crasto products have been highly recognized, both by the general public and by specialized critics, which for Quinta do Crasto assumes the greatest importance and responsibility towards its customers and partners. who, year after year, reward it with their preference.
Quinta de la Rosa has been in the Bergqvist family since 1906, although they have been in the port trade as shippers under the family name, Feueheerd, since 1815. It currently has around 55 hectares under vine and produces around 80,000 liters of port and 300,000 liters of table wine each year.
Quinta de la Rosa was given as a christening gift for Claire Feueheerd, Sophia's grandmother, in 1906. Claire's father, Albert, ran the family port shipping company, Feueheerds. Albert was a real pioneer and was one of the first shippers to make 'Single Quinta' port from La Rosa's grapes. He was responsible for building Vale do Inferno's vineyards with some of the highest, most impressive walls in the Douro. He also built a wine cellar with 8 lagares and started buying grapes in from local producers and making port at La Rosa. This enabled Albert to retain the quality in production. At this time, most port was made by small farmers in their own mills.
Unfortunately Albert ran into difficulties due to the Depression and the company, Feueheerds was sold in the 1930s to Barros. However, Quinta de la Rosa was kept in the family and was run by Sophia's grandmother, Claire. Claire just grew grapes and sold them to Crofts and latterly to go into Sandeman's Rebello Valente port. In 1988 Sophia and her father, Tim Bergqvist, decided to restart the family business and launched Quinta de la Rosa as a top quality port producer onto the market place.
Starting in the early 1990s, the Bergqvist family were one of the pioneers in taking red wine production in the Douro region seriously. Quinta de la Rosa's wines, both red and white, have won many accolades in the press and are sold in many prestigious restaurants and wine stores around the world. See NEWS AND AWARDS. Since 2002, Jorge Moreira, one of the finest wine makers in Portugal, has been making wines at La Rosa. La Rosa celebrated its 30th anniversary since it restarted in 2018 with the launch of its 30 year Tawny. Unfortunately Tim, the founder, died in the same year but was able to have seen and appreciated La Rosa's recent successes.
Quinta de la Rosa is situated in Northern Portugal, 100kms inland from Oporto. It is set in the heart of the Alto Douro ‘A’ grade port growing area and is located along the banks of the river, near Pinhão.
On the right top to bottom, you can see the development of La Rosa from 1930s, 1950s, 1970s, 1990s and 2013.
On the south bank of the Douro River, in Cima-Corgo, right in front of Quinta do Porto, is Quinta do Seixo, which offers an amazing, breathtaking view over the Douro River. Owned by Sogrape Vinhos since 1987, the company invested here, in 2007, approximately €7.5 million in a modern winemaking center, where high quality Port and Douro wines are produced. An innovative project not only due to the high technology used in the winery, but also for the creation of a tourist circuit that is, at the same time, educational and attractive!
With Quinta do Seixo, Sogrape Vinhos, through the Sandeman brand, seeks to attract more visitors to the Douro and explain a little more about this region and the fantastic wines it gives rise to. That's why it offers a guided tour of the cellar, the wine cellar and the robotic presses, a visit complemented by multimedia resources that explain the entire wine production cycle and by a Port Wine tasting (selected harvests) in a room with a panoramic view spectacular view over the Douro.
With around 108 hectares of total area, Quinta do Seixo's production is based on 71 hectares of selected vineyards, planted on terraces and under the overhead vineyard system. Predominantly Tinta Roriz and Touriga Nacional, the grape varieties planted at Quinta do Seixo are traditional and recommended in the region, even in the more than 11 hectares that were replanted in 2008.
Quinta do Seixo is equipped with a modern wine cellar that receives and vinifies grapes from the Quinta itself, from Quinta do Porto, Quinta do Caêdo and Quinta do Vau, that is, all Quintas da Sogrape Wines from the Cima Corgo sub-region and purchase grapes from farmers with whom the company has supply contracts.
