Founded in 1880 by Adriano Ramos Pinto, this Port House has always had a pioneering spirit – from the distinctive and stylish ‘art nouveau’ advertising from the 1900s to the continuing wide ranging vineyard research with results that have benefited the whole port trade. Champagne Louis Roederer, now the majority shareholder, perpetuates this philosophy and ensures continuity in a company renowned for wine-making excellence.
Ramos Pinto holds the largest proportion of vineyards in relation to its production, giving it a high degree of control over viticultural methods and harvest timing. The house tends 187 hectares of prime vineyards in the Alto Corgo and Douro Superior areas of the famed Douro region, the mountainous valley formed by the Douro River and its tributaries.
The grapes from Quinta de Ervamoira and Bom Retiro were harvested by hand in small containers and taken to the lagar to be crushed by foot. Fermentation lasts 3 to 5 days, producing a wine with excellent extract. The wine is then aged in Vila Nova de Gaia, in wooden vats of approximately 15,000 litres. The blend was made in May 2019 and bottled in October of the same year. This is a traditional LBV which is left unfiltered and unfined to preserve all the existing fruit and its great ageing potential.
In the Douro region, 2014-2015 was an extremely dry viticultural year, with much less rainfall than the previous years. A cold, dry winter was followed by an atypically hot spring, with great peaks of heat in May and at the end of June, which speeded up the vegetative rhythm. However, water reserves in the soil and the cool nights experienced throughout the summer enabled the grapes to ripen smoothly and progressively. The harvest of the grapes for Port wine began in the Upper Douro at Quinta da Ervamoira on 27 August and ended on 30 September at Quinto do Bom Retiro, located in the Cima Corgo.
Great concentration of colour. Lively shades of ruby, opaque and very dense. Fresh red fruit aromas such as strawberry, raspberry and red cherry have the first impact. Notes of lavender and cloves add to the complexity of the wine. This unfiltered LBV is soft, engaging and brimming with energy. Rich and dense with underlying black fruit on the mid-palate. Tannins are noticeable yet well integrated, followed by a long flavourful finish.
Goes well with game dishes, cheese soufflé, Serra cheese or other fatty cheeses and chocolate desserts.
Serve between 17º and 18º C. Store the bottle upright, in a cool, dry and dark place
93/100 – Wine Advocate 2020, Mark Squires
Douro Valley, Portugal
62% Touriga Nacional
28% Touriga Franca
5% Mix of old vines
3% Barroca
2% Sousão
Natural Cork
19.5%
100g/l
4.5g/l
Yes
Yes
