In 2001 begonnen Sandra Tavares da Silva (Quinta do Vale D. Maria en Quinta de Chocapalha) en haar man Jorge Borges (toen Niepoort, nu Passadouro) met de verwezenlijking van hun droom.
Ze kochten een wijngaard van zeer oude stokken van 2 ha in Vale de Mendiz naast Noval. De jaarlijkse oogst is ongeveer 4000 flessen en 100 Magnums.
Vanaf de eerste oogst zijn zij gaan behoren tot de iconen van de Douro en worden nationaal en internationaal geprezen om hun charme en karakter van hun wijnen die het unieke terroir van de Douro-regio vertegenwoordigen.
RECENSIE
Robert Parker The Wine Advocate December 2019. 94/100 punten
"The 2016 Pintas is a field blend from old vines aged for 20 months in 30% new French oak. It comes in at 14% alcohol. When last seen, this was just a tank sample. It's now in the USA. Solid, focused and graceful, this 2016 Pintas adds the concentration of fruit—dry but impressive—that the Pintas Character lacks, relatively speaking. The power is greater, although not by a lot, and the mouthfeel might be more velvety, but it is that concentration of fruit that makes this a lot more special. It doesn't have that tightly wound feel I like to see, but as time goes on, expect this to become even more graceful, showing even more finesse.
We'll see in time how high the ceiling is here—but this certainly still has the ability to improve notably in the cellar. You can approach this now, but giving it a few more years will certainly help it acquire more complexity and harmony. It is surprisingly gentle at times, though, even now.
This small producer, owned by co-winemakers (and husband and wife) Sandra Tavares and Jorges Borges is one of Douro's most consistently excellent producers these days. From the increasingly refined table wines to the monumental 2017 Port I reviewed in July's interim issue, they are firing on all burners. The Manoella terroir came to them a little later that their more familiar Pintas brand. There is a significant difference in styles. Manoella is more about finesse and what many would call minerality. Pintas, relatively, tends to be fruitier and bigger. They are both very well crafted, of course—executing their styles very well."