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Quinta do Vale Dona Maria
www.valedonamaria.com

Former proprietor of Quinta do Noval, Cristiano van Zeller has always believed that the Douro has more to offer the world than port wine alone, regardless of how exceptional and dominant it may be. Convinced that small independent winemakers could find a place on the market, he encouraged them and helped them showcase their wines’ unique character and develop a niche. He joined in the adventure himself in the mid-1990s and can now take credit for some of Quinta do Vale Dona Maria’s finest Portuguese reds, as well as port wines that prove his war is won.

The wines are from a single south-facing vineyard owned by Cristiano van Zeller and his wife Joanna Lemos in the famous Rio Torto valley in the heart of the Douro. Renowned for its fortified wines, the Douro also produces some excellent table wines taking advantage of the ideal location and quality of its vineyards.

2000 Vintage Port .375L

Picking of the grapes occurred late due to the the very hot and dry weather during the harvest of the grapes for the Douro table wine which allowed the small parcels selected for this Port to ripen to perfection for a traditional Vintage Port year. All grapes were continuously foot trodden in the lagares for five days before and during fermentation.

"Quinta do Vale Dona Maria 2000 Vintage Port is deep purple red in colour, with very concentrated and still closed aromas of mature red fruit with a predominance of raspberries and black cherries. The tannins are very ripe and concentrated. It is a wine with great balance and a very long and fruity finish. A classic with only 1,000 cases produced."

90 Points - J. Suckling

SKU: 204925

2005 Vintage Port

The Quinta Vale D. Maria 2005 Port is incredibly deep in color, violet, dark red and purple, has a tremendous concentration of mature dark red fruit aromas, with a very typical predominance of blackberries, black cherries and plum jam, cassis and esteva (rock rose). Very powerful, though very elegant, it is a Port with great balance and finesse and a very long and fruity finish. Remarkable quality and incredible value. About 800 cases were produced.

SKU: 488205

2013 Douro Tinto

"Quinta do Vale D Maria Douro Red 2013 is a field blend of 41 grape varieties comprising different parcels and exposures. Harvested by hand (it has to be), the fruit was then foot trodden in traditional lagares and aged for 22 months in oak; but, you cannot taste the oak in the wine mainly because it has been subsumed by the spicy, creamy sloe and damson fruit. The whole ensemble is intense, vibrant and exquisitely balanced."

93 Points - Decanter

94 Points - Wine Spectator

SKU: 528646

2013 Douro Tinto in Magnums

SKU: 742890

2013 Rufo do Vale Dona Maria

60% Touriga Franca & 40% Touriga Nacional

A crowd pleaser and bargain from the Douro. Full of fruit flavors of  cherry, strawberry and black currents, spice and peper notes throughout. Dark chocolate on the extended finish, with hints of licorice. Enjoy now and through 2018 with grilled meats and fowl.

Best Value Douro - Wine Spectator 2016

SKU: 920660

Reserve Port Lot 10 (Unfiltered)

Produced from grapes of a single vineyard located in the far hills of the Douro that has been in family hands for over a century, Cristiano van Zellar has bottled this Port, unfined and unfiltered, as his personal reserve. Issued from wines that were vinified foot trodden in old granite stone "lagares" and aged in old wooden vats, this unfiltered Reserve is bottled only once every year, on the date shown on the label.

Full bodied with a deep purple colour, this Port shows a great structure with intense fruity character and soft ripe tannins and a very long finish. It was specifically bottled to age in bottle for many years to come but it can be thoroughly enjoyed now. It will throw a deposit with bottle age. Please serve carefully.

SKU: 546077