Quinta do Vallado Reserva Red 2007
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This blend is very dark red, with crimson highlights with fig and black plumb aromas, as well as tobacco and a hint of balsamic oak. The palate shows great structure and a full-bodied firmness, with mature, silky tannins. Mineral notes mix with the aforementioned fruit, leading to a very elegant, complex and persistent finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
This is rich, powerful and finely crafted, with layers of concentrated red plum, currant, blueberry and kirsch flavors. Silky tannins knit it seamlessly together. Elegant and refined finish is filled with mineral, smoke and spice. Drink now through 2016.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2007 Reserva is mostly a field blend from very old vines with younger vines (15 years) of Touriga Nacional constituting 30% of the blend. This is a point in the vertical where we get some freshness in terms of fruit, but this has a nice balance of that freshness with vigor and maturity. The wine has acquired some complexity to go with its depth, which gives it the nuance it was originally missing when I first saw it. The combination of concentration and structure should serve this wine well as it goes through the years. It looks poised to age well for another decade, probably much more. This is a prime beneficiary of this vertical, demonstrating both its quality and its aging ability. You can drink this now, but it is still on the upswing. Along with the 2000, it is one of the more dramatic wines in this vertical.
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Wine & Spirits
Once a part of Dona Antonia de Ferreira's extensive holdings in Douro, the Quinto do Vallado is still in the hands of her descendants. The property rises above the confluence of the Douro and Corgo rivers, just east of Regua, the wine produced by another Ferreira descendant, Francisco Olazabal, whose family runs the Quinta do Vale Meao. Olazabal's hand is apparent in this wine, which could stand in for a great vintage Vale Meao in its brilliant richness and acidity. The schist hillsides come through in powerful minerality, the glints of red fruits and black stone reflecting across a vast expanse of flavor. The texture is supple; the heady spice and floral finish last for minutes. This is destined to be a classic, with the potential to develop for a decade or more.
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Wine Enthusiast
From old, mixed planting vineyards in the Quinta do Vallado, this is an impressively complex blend of flavors, from rich spice, smooth tannins, the richest plum juice and a gorgeous, opulent texture. It is ripe, drinkable now, but likely to benefit from several years aging.
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In the heart of Portugal’s most famous wine region – the Douro Valley – near the historical center of Regua, the Quinta do Vallado vineyards, winery and guest house spread across both banks of the Corgo River at the very point where it meets the Douro. With winemaking references that date back to 1716, the Quinta belonged to the legendary Portuguese vintner D. Antonia Adelaide Ferreira, and has remained in the family through modern times.
The current owners, Joao Ferreria Alvares Ribeiro, Francisco Ferreira and Francisco Olazabal, are the sixth generation of this remarkable family, and the family’s mission to produce some of the best still wines of this fertile valley continues with the red blends and varietals that are exported worldwide. Of the 38-hectare Estate, 26 hectares are filled with vines 60 years and older. It is from these vines that Quinta do Vallado’s Red Reserve and Touriga Nacional wines are made, so it is no wonder that the wines are often found to be rated and reviewed among the best wines from the Douro.
With hundreds of red grape varieties to choose from, winemakers have the freedom to create a virtually endless assortment of blended red wines. In many European regions, strict laws are in place determining the set of varieties that may be used, but in the New World, experimentation is permitted and encouraged resulting in a wide variety of red wine styles. Blending can be utilized to enhance balance or create complexity, lending different layers of flavors and aromas. For example, a red wine blend variety that creates a fruity and full-bodied wine would do well combined with one that is naturally high in acidity and tannins. Sometimes small amounts of a particular variety are added to boost color or aromatics. Blending can take place before or after fermentation, with the latter, more popular option giving more control to the winemaker over the final qualities of the wine.
How to Serve Red Wine
A common piece of advice is to serve red wine at “room temperature,” but this suggestion is imprecise. After all, room temperature in January is likely to be quite different than in August, even considering the possible effect of central heating and air conditioning systems. The proper temperature to aim for is 55° F to 60° F for lighter-bodied reds and 60° F to 65° F for fuller-bodied wines.
How Long Does Red Wine Last?
Once opened and re-corked, a bottle stored in a cool, dark environment (like your fridge) will stay fresh and nicely drinkable for a day or two. There are products available that can extend that period by a couple of days. As for unopened bottles, optimal storage means keeping them on their sides in a moderately humid environment at about 57° F. Red wines stored in this manner will stay good – and possibly improve – for anywhere from one year to multiple decades. Assessing how long to hold on to a bottle is a complicated science. If you are planning long-term storage of your reds, seek the advice of a wine professional.
The home of Port—perhaps the most internationally acclaimed beverage—the Douro region of Portugal is one of the world’s oldest delimited wine regions, established in 1756. The vineyards of the Douro, set on the slopes surrounding the Douro River (known as the Duero in Spain), are incredibly steep, necessitating the use of terracing and thus, manual vineyard management as well as harvesting. The Douro's best sites, rare outcroppings of Cambrian schist, are reserved for vineyards that yield high quality Port.
While more than 100 indigenous varieties are approved for wine production in the Douro, there are five primary grapes that make up most Port and the region's excellent, though less known, red table wines. Touriga Nacional is the finest of these, prized for its deep color, tannins and floral aromatics. Tinta Roriz (Spain's Tempranillo) adds bright acidity and red fruit flavors. Touriga Franca shows great persistence of fruit and Tinta Barroca helps round out the blend with its supple texture. Tinta Cão, a fine but low-yielding variety, is now rarely planted but still highly valued for its ability to produce excellent, complex wines.
White wines, generally crisp, mineral-driven blends of Arinto, Viosinho, Gouveio, Malvasia Fina and an assortment of other rare but local varieties, are produced in small quantities but worth noting.
With hot summers and cool, wet winters, the Duoro has a maritime climate.