Quinta do Noval

To the north-east of Pinhão, in the heart of the Douro Valley, lies the Quinta do Noval estate, first and foremost a vineyard. It is the only historic port producer to bear the name of its own vineyard and to produce vintage port exclusively from its own harvest. At the centre of this vineyard lies a small plot of ungrafted vines, thanks to which Noval has become one of the most talked-about names in the history of port.

History

The name Quinta do Noval first appeared in land registers in 1715. In 1894, after phylloxera had devastated the estate, António José da Silva, a port wine supplier from Porto, purchased the estate and replanted it with vines. His son-in-law, Luís Vasconcelos de Porto, later converted many of the old narrow terraces into wider ones, improving both land use efficiency and the exposure of the vineyards.

The estate gained international renown thanks to the release of the 1931 Vintage Port and the 1931 Nacional. Most exporters had refused to release any product that year, deterred by the global economic depression and memories of the large shipments of 1927. Noval’s bold decision secured its place among the great vintage port houses in the British and American markets, and it has maintained this position ever since. The 1963 Nacional is considered to be one of the best ports ever.

In 1993, Quinta do Noval became part of the international wine group AXA Millésimes. In 1997, a new bottling line and warehouse were built near Pinhão, making Noval the first traditional port producer to centralise all its operations within the Douro Valley itself, rather than in the lodges of Vila Nova de Gaia. In the 1990s, around 100 hectares were replanted, with pruning methods adapted to each plot individually. Unfortified Douro wines have been produced since the 2004 vintage.

Vineyards

The vineyard covers 200 hectares, all classified as Category A, the highest category in the official Douro classification system. The plots are situated at altitudes ranging from 100 to 500 metres, with exposure to all points of the compass. The soils consist of schist with varying proportions of clay. The vineyard’s magnificent old terraces, built from schist, remain its defining feature. Today, each plot is planted with a single grape variety, selected for its suitability to the specific altitude, aspect and soil type of that plot.

At the very heart of the vineyard lies ‘National’, a small plot planted with ungrafted vines of local grape varieties. ‘National’ wine is produced in exactly the same way as the estate’s other wines: the grapes are trodden by foot in stone vats. The difference lies not in the winemaking process, but in the grapes themselves and their origin. ‘National’ does not always follow the same rhythm as the rest of the vineyard: for example, in 1996, ‘National’ was declared an outstanding vintage in a year when not a single standard vintage was released. Conversely, in 2007, an excellent vintage year, ‘Nacional’ was not declared. Since 1994, the decision to declare a vintage has been made only when the quality, in the estate’s own words, is indisputable. Production amounts to just 200–250 cases per vintage.

Grape varieties

The vineyard grows the varieties Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz, Tinto Cão and Susao.

Winemaking

All wines are produced by treading the grapes with feet in stone vats. Fermentation is halted by the addition of grape spirit, which gives the port its characteristic sweetness and ensures long ageing potential.

The nacional wines are only produced in excellent vintages.

Wines

The range includes vintage port, produced from strictly selected top wines from vineyards covering 200 hectares, typically yielding between 1,200 and 5,000 cases per harvest.

The Vintage Port Nacional, from a plot of ungrafted vines, is produced in quantities of just 200 to 250 cases per vintage and, according to the estate’s own description, is the most valuable port in the world.

Aged Tawny and Colheitas port wines, including single-vintage Tawnies aged entirely in casks until bottling, complete the range of fortified wines. Since 2004, the estate has also produced non-fortified red and white wines from the Douro.