Douro Superior, a limitless terroir

Thirty-three years ago, in 1988, we’ve integrated the Quinta de Vale de Cavalos into our heritage, thus complementing our estate’s portfolio, since then having one in each of the sub-regions of the Douro Valley.

It may sound fiction but, in reality, who convinced Manuel Pintão – one of the family members that, at the time, was more sceptical about this acquisition, was a little terrapin and its mere existence nearby a small stream that was there, long before the dam was built, that now provides a big lake and an amazing view.

Our estate Vale de Cavalos is located in Numão, in Douro Superior (Upper Douro), a region that is well-known for its excellence status and a mysterious atmosphere, due to the fact that this area just started to be explored for wine purposes in 1791, by time this part of the river became navigable.

The Upper Douro is the driest and the warmest zone of this region, therefore having enormous potential to give rise to particularly dense and structured wines, while the high altitude of the estate, ranging from 440m to 510m, allows us to produce especially fresh wines.

Whereas the distinct soil, characterized by the transition between schist and granite, gives place to wines with a distinctive minerality profile, the proximity between the vines and the water appears as the perfect finale, being the right key to address the challenging droughts that frequently affect this sub-region.

Here, in Vale de Cavalos, we have an area of approximately 51 hectares of vine, fragmented into numerous small parcels: Tanque, Ribeira Nova, ZOC and Ribeira Teja, where the main indigenous red grapes varieties are Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Barroca, and white grapes like Gouveio, Rabigato and Moscatel Galego, but also our dear Vinhas Velhas (Old Vines), with more than 40 years old.

All these features, together with the abundance and diversity of the Upper Douro “terroir”, give us the chance to create wines with entirely different profiles, using various grape varieties from distinct parcels of the estate, based on many diversified techniques.

As a proof of the diversity and richness of this particular “terroir”, we’ve a broad range of Douro DOC wines, which clearly shows the experimental, creative and original character of our house, which we are so proud of.

Discover our wide range of wines here.