Dow's, Porto Vintage DOC

About Dow`s

For over two centuries the name of DOW has been associated with the finest Port from the vineyards of the Upper Douro Valley. Still produced by the time-honored method of treading. In either system, fermentations are relatively short (two to three days) because Port is a fortified wine. Fortification, which involves the addition of natural grape spirit to the fermenting juice, intentionally interrupts the fermentation process at a point when approximately half of the grapes natural sugar has been converted into alcohol. This accounts for Port s characteristic rich, luscious style and also contributes to the wine s considerable aging potential. Given the short fermentation cycle, it is crucial to extract as much flavour, colour, and tannins as possible from the grape skins. Dow s continues to make some of its Port by treading in stone Lagares (shallow treading tanks). The Upper Douro is one of the last places in the world where traditional treading has been maintained. Dow s winemaking team developed the world s first purpose-built automated treading machine. The principal grape varieties planted are Touriga Franca, Touriga Nacional, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, and old mixed vines. Two-thirds of the vineyard is now over 20 years old, whilst one third is between 30 to 40 years old. The Quinta s high proportion of old vines (45% are over 25 years old) is of critical importance. The old vines are very low-yielding, producing on average less than 1Kg of grapes each, giving intense and concentrated musts which are ideal for classic Vintage Port.