The Perfect Recipe for Tradition and Innovation

Here in Poças, still under the centenary celebration mode, the respect and admiration for the tradition persist endlessly, going hand in hand with the creative and innovative approach that marks the 4th generation of the family, managing the company since 2020.

A long time ago, while port wine was sailing down the Douro river, on board a “rabelo” boat on the way to the port, where it was going to stay and grow old, the shad was leaving the sea, saling up the river, looking for the perfect place to spawn, usually between March and May.

For those who do not know a lot about life under water, shad is migratory fish that leaves the sea to go up the river at the breeding period.

Because the shad was becoming irresistible in the eyes of the crew that were sailing together with the oak barrels filled with wine, the illustrious cooper ended up becoming a fisherman and a chef, putting all its talent and knowledge to work and making use of the barrels in a unique way: turing them into a smokehouse, fully ready to receive the so-welcome shad.

A bottomless oak barrel crossed by a wire mesh on the inside, in order to receive the fish, with an iron stove below, where the air could pass underneath. A long, long burning with smoke, without flame.

In our Cellars, by the hand of our winemaker André Pimentel Barbosa, we took up the challenge of recovering a very old recipe of smoked shad in barrel that came from our ancestors, and the Portuguese wine magazine “Revista de Vinhos” accompanied us throughout this unforgettable time travel.

Take one step back for the tradition in order to go further and to recover mouth-watering aromas and flavours.

Our Smoked Shad is the tastiest result of persistence and love. Persistence in innovating, never stop thinking about everything good that might happen; and the love we have for our long history and how much we want keep our tradition alive.

The perfect wine to accompany this delicious smoked shad? Definitely our brand-new Poças Fora da Série Acrobata 2019, a white wine that aged in old barrels under a thin “flor”, showing the perfect balance between an oxidative profile and freshness.