Description
Situated in the Pinhão Valley not far from Noval, Quinta Passadouro belongs to Dirk Niepoort and Dieter Bohnmann. Dirk's family has a long tradition of port production which began with the foundation of Niepoort in 1842. Well over a century later, Dirk and his father Relf are the fifth and fourth generations respectively to manage the business.

Until recently, the company bought all its grapes from small growers but towards the end of the 1980s, Niepoort began to invest in their own quintas. In 1988 it purchased Nápoles, followed by Carril in 1989 and Quinta do Passadouro, an estate made up of four tiny quintas, in 1990.

Niepoort is very traditional in its approach to making port. With most production farmed organically, the house avoids the use of pesticides and herbicides. While the presence of weeds may increase the strain on the vines resulting in less fruit, smaller yields invariably produce grapes of superior quality and concentration. As for the grape crushing, Dirk is a firm believer in the traditional method of 'treading' (by foot) and employs twice as many 'treaders' as the majority of producers in the region to extract maximum colour and flavour.

The result is a smooth textured port full of remarkably long and fruity flavours. Wine Magazine in a recent tasting of 2000 vintage ports, wrote of this wine "Ripe, rich, fruity, balanced. There is chocolate on the palate and superb fruit, a nice grip and good acidity".

Wine Int Mag Single Quinta Port Tasting January 2005, United Kingdom

Wine Int Mag Single Quinta Port Tasting January 2005, United Kingdom

Wine Spectator 15/05/03 2003, USA

Wine Spectator 15/05/03 2003, USA

Robert Parker - The Wine Advocate Issue 143 30/10/02 2002, USA

James Suckling - Wine Spectator 15/09/02 2002, USA

James Suckling - Wine Spectator 15/09/02 2002, USA

Decanter Magazine Port Report Aug 2000, United Kingdom

Decanter Magazine Port Report Aug 2000, United Kingdom