Quinta do Tedo - Reviews - Tour of Duty: The Dynamic Douro

Tour of Duty: The Dynamic Douro

For the Love of Port, April 2006, Roy Hersh

Earlier in the year, Mario R. Ferreira and I had talked about a collaboration to bring small groups of wine enthusiasts to Portugal to discover the Port region. After lots of planning, in October we led our first tour group to experience Port. As much as I enjoy visiting Oporto and Vila Nova de Gaia, I couldn't wait for the opportunity to introduce this savvy group of Port lovers to the awe-inspiring Upper Douro River Valley. Being able to share in their overwhelming excitement was as purely joyful as watching my young daughter's delight from jumping in a puddle. It was indescribably satisfying, and the fact that our guests had never been to Portugal before made it even more exciting for all of us.

We took the funtastic train ride from the beautifully tiled São Bento train station in the heart of Oporto to Régua about 2 1/2 hours away. Much of the first hour is spent looking into backyards and gardens while passing through small rural villages. Then suddenly appearing just beyond the window is the beauty of the Baixo Corgo, (translates to: below the Corgo River ... but most know it as the Lower Douro) and the vistas just keep getting ever more spectacular as we advance into the Alto Douro (Upper Douro). The Douro region really begins at the Serra do Marão, a mountain range approximately 40 miles east of Oporto, which continues all the way to the border with Spain. The train meanders along the North bank of the Douro River, and vineyards stretch as far as the eye can see, from the river's edge to the very hill tops. The sheer incline of the precipitously terraced slopes (often 35-70% inclination) is an impressive sight, and pictures just never seem to capture their true grace or steep gradation. The river itself was dammed decades ago and is now just a tame, slow moving waterway compared to the white water wildness of yesteryear.

Upon disembarking we were met by the very affable young man, Jorge Alves, the winemaker and vineyard manager at Quinta do Tedo and we crossed the river to get to the well-appointed Quinta.

Quinta do Tedo:

The property is situated with 14 hectares on the South side of the Douro, adjacent to the Tedo River. The production facility was built in 1957, by the same construction team that built the Pinhao Bridge. There was a large renovation project that took place in 1997, in which the six lagares were brought into the modern age so that fermentations could be controlled within. Each of the stone lagares has cold water piping running just below the flooring and normally runs at 6-7 degrees C. These particular lagares are of two sizes and hold about 7 or 11 pipes each (a pipe = 550 liters) with a total capacity of 54 pipes.

Vincent and Kay Bouchard (Vincent from the famed Burgundy family) are the owners of this single Quinta endeavor. Tedo's production is 100% foot trodden in lagar, the vines average over 30 years old. They have invested their time and money to renovate this historic property that dates back about 250 years. Tedo has been making VP since 1995 and also has a lineup of LBVs dating back to 1994. I did not discover Tedo's Ports until early in 2003.

I enjoyed seeing some of the old, braided wild chestnut "cestas" (baskets) that are filled with grapes from the vineyards and taken to be processed. These particular cestas are of two sizes and the smaller ones hold up to 22 kilos, while the larger ones hold approximately 40 kilos of grapes and weigh an additional 8 kilos (nearly 110 pounds in total, for those that don't speak metrics). The men carrying the grapes, oftentimes down very steep dirt paths, must be very sure footed and have incredible endurance to do this every day during the harvest.

Five very low yielding parcels on the property produce between 27 and 30 hectoliters per hectare of handpicked grapes and the depth and concentration of fruit is apparent in the Tedo wines. There is no inoculation that takes place with the Port production, as only natural yeasts are utilized. In fact, Bouchard and Alves believe in using environmentally sound, products and practices in the vineyards and they are amongst the early birds in the Douro to approach vineyard management in this way.

Fermentations can be very speedy with as little as two to three days. This is very different than table wines where the fermentations usually last for weeks or even months. The lower the ripeness and residual sugar of the grapes, the faster the fermentation. In a hot growing season in the Douro like 2003, where the grapes are concentrated and sugars run high, the fermentations can take up to six or seven days.

2003 Quanta Terra Douro red - 60% Touriga Nacional, 20% Tinta Roriz, 20% Tinta Barroca. Bright purple, almost like a tank sample, it needs 3 years for the overt fruit to meld with the other components. Very fine acidity and moderate tannins provide the backbone for the extreme sweet plum and cassis juice, but the fruit will integrate well as the overall cuvee is in synch. 89 points (10/27/05)

1997 Quinta do Tedo Douro red - 2000 liters produced and it is still in wood, tasted from cask, with light ruby/pink coloration. There is a dominant raspberry nuance with a bit too much oak and a charred note. This Tedo offers spicy juice with lots of fresh berry flavors and a light-medium body. There is a slight tawny flavor to this wine which is influenced by the oak treatment and a gentle but bitter finish that is a bit clipped and shows too much spirit. Out of balance at this time and hopefully it will come together in years to come. 84 points (10/27/05)

Quinta do Tedo Finest Reserve Port - From 25 year old vines , this cuvee is blended with 18 different grape types. Crimson color, with bright notes of strawberry and vanilla from the French oak utilized. This is an ultra-sweet young ruby Port with overt ripe red berry juice. It's simple but tasty and readily approachable. 86 points (10/27/05)

1999 Quinta do Tedo LBV Port - Medium ruby color. A medicinal and spirituous nose with red fruits and bright floral notes. On the palate, it delivers lightness to the mouth feel with sweet plum fruit that shows a lively tannic structure. It's smooth and provides generous length to the finish. 87 points (10/27/05)

2000 Quinta do Tedo LBV Port - Dark magenta hue. Plum and Pomegranate aromas are intriguing and I enjoyed the nose here that is imbued with a touch of spice. Light-medium body, intense ripe, tooth-tweaking sweetness but fortunately it has plenty of acidity to carry the RS here. Darker berry profile than all wines and Ports tasted so far at Tedo. This shows greater mid-palate intensity than the '99 and is more to my liking. A very fine and persistent aftertaste supported by a nice smooth texture. 90 points (10/27/05)

2000 Quinta do Tedo Vintage Port - Dark ruby with an ethereal fresh floral fragrance and a weird, distinctly plastic note that mars the elegance. This is a medium weight, fruit forward style of VP, bolstered by brawny tannins and a very long finish that hints at some spirit and slight bitterness. It is actually better than it sounds here. 88 points (10/27/05)

2000 Quinta do Tedo "Savedre" Vintage Port - Dark garnet nearly opaque appearance. There is a lush strawberry note and a similar ethylene note to this 2000 as well. It offers up ripe and juicy dark cherry and a generous dose of sweet grenadine syrup. I liked this as much as the Tedo SQVP but the tannins are slightly more pronounced and the spirit on the finish detracts from the overall pleasure at this point. I can not predict if this will integrate and lose some of the heat. 87 points (10/27/05)

2003 Quinta do Tedo Vintage Port - Nearly full opacity with very dark ruby-purple color. Red berry, mocha and rose petals deliver a wonderful aromatic profile. I enjoyed the lush and round mouthfeel with tannins that were much less gripping than the cask sample I remember fondly. Medium body and a very long and delineated finish with waves of chocolate. 92+ points (10/27/05)

We had an outstanding meal and were all hungry after the train ride and hour of barrel tasting, (those wines are not reported here). What a fun afternoon visit and it was nice to walk though the vineyards and touch the schistous soil. We also hiked through the garden where most of the vegetables had recently been picked, some for our lunch. There was a fantastic view of Niepoort's Quinta de Napoles which was just below Tedo and closer to the river. Although this is an up and coming property, the owner Vincent Bouchard is very involved in improving the overall quality of the product and splits time with his cooperage business in Napa Valley.