Portal da Azenha
The Fleming Roland Heelen bought in here hectare by hectare. Only A-grade land, the highest class in the Douro.
Portal da Azenha (meaning: the gateway to the mill) has grown since the 1980s into one of the finest quality wine estates in the Douro Valley. In the 1980s and 1990s the Fleming Roland Heelen, out of pure passion but very selectively, once again bought several hectares of vineyards of the highest quality. Today the estate covers 60 hectares of vines of the highest quality.
- Winemakers, still wines: José Alves, Osvaldo Almado, Jean-Claude Cretu
- Winemaker, Port: Miguel Braga
The oenology and vinification are the work of Mr José Alves (Quinta da Rede) and Mr Osvaldo Almado, who can draw on more than 50 years of experience. This accumulated knowledge of craftsmen who also look after the terroir, the grapes and the winemaking techniques results in still wines of astonishing quality. The vinification of the Ports is in the hands of the widely respected winemaker Miguel Braga (Quinta de Moura).
The quality of the vineyards is defined by impeccably maintained vines and a unique subsoil of granite and schist. The vineyard soils of the Douro are classified from G to A, with A being the highest quality. The vineyards of Portal da Azenha belong to the A category, which makes them the highest-classified vineyards in the Douro.
The Portal da Azenha range is very broad and includes white, rosé and red wines. Alongside the unoaked wines, the whites and reds also include oak-aged white and red wines. These are the Reserva and Grande Reserva white and red wines. The range also includes Ports, among them White Port, Ruby Port and Tawny Port, 10 Years Old, 20 Years Old, 30 Years Old and 40 Years Old.
The ageing cellar holds young oak barrels from France, the United States and Portugal.
Roland Heelen: “Money is not what matters most to me, it is the passion that counts”
Given the location of the vineyards, exclusively in the highest class A, protecting the crop is not even necessary every year. The soil absorbs enough CO2 and insect life is extremely well protected. Extremely high quality and… super sustainable.