JORGE ROSAS

Join in on discussions with winemakers and other personalities in the Port, Madeira and Douro Wine trades.

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Christian Gollnick
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Christian Gollnick »

Dear Jorge:
Thank you for spending the time with us here and answering our questions - very much appreciated.
Porto and Gaia have seen a dramatic rise in tourism over the last 10 years. This must be very good news for your company, as your amazingly beautiful lodge is in the perfect location and I'm sure that the amount of Port consumed and sold to tourists is quite sizable and important to RAMOS PINTO. How much of your Port and Wine production is sold directly at your lodge?
I'm also happy to see that the tourism seems to have discovered the Douro Valley. I know that you use sometimes Quinta da Ervamoira for guest entertainment and you have also a nice little museum attached to the property - but it's so far away from everything else... Does RAMOS PINTO have any plans to establish another visitor center in the Douro, for example at Quinta do Bom Retiro? It always has something magic to taste wines near the vineyards where they are coming from...

Thanks for keeping up the good work... your company has great wines and it's a pleasure to deal with the staff at RAMOS PINTO!!!
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Roy Hersh
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Roy Hersh »

Hi Jorge,

Would you be willing to share with us, one NEW captivating or innovative project that Ramos Pinto is working on?



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Ambition driven by passion, rather than money, is as strong an elixir as is Port. http://www.fortheloveofport.com
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Roy Hersh
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Roy Hersh »

It would be great if you could tell us a little bit about your own launch of wines.

What inspired you to do this separately from RP?

Also, along the same lines, what does your range of wines consist of?


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Ambition driven by passion, rather than money, is as strong an elixir as is Port. http://www.fortheloveofport.com
Moses Botbol
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Moses Botbol »

Jorge:

In honor of your visit to the forum, I had a '03 RP Duas Quintas Reserva Especial last night. What a rock star wine and quite a value at that. :yumyum:

What will it take to have Portuguese wines be considered the equal to other European countries on the top tier (or any tier)? Portuguese wines still seem to be an outlier compared to France, Italy, and Spain.
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Bradley Bogdan
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Bradley Bogdan »

Jorge,

First off, thank you so much for your time. I know we all love to hear the insights of those who labor to create the wines we adore and enjoy. I love that you've mentioned the Ramos-Pinto '83 VP a couple times in this thread, as it was one of my favorite wines in my very first tasting with this group. Now for a few questions!

With all of the research into grape varieties and concentration on planting the "main 5" over the past few decades, do you think this has made it easier, harder, or not had an effect on producers that have now looked to those same grapes for distinctive dry reds?

What is your "go-to" wine to help someone not familiar with Port experience it properly?

Do you think the winegrowers of the Douro are in a good position to handle the challenges of climate change? What do you see as the biggest challenges you and others will face?

Thank you again!


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Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA
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Location: Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal

Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA »

Roy Hersh wrote:Hi Jorge,

Would you be willing to share with us, one NEW captivating or innovative project that Ramos Pinto is working on?



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Olá Roy,
One of the many projects that we are currently working on is in our Quinta da Urtiga. This is a very small (3.5 hectare) but very old vineyard, planted in pre-phylloxera terraces. We have identified 32 different grape varieties and the oldest vines are centenary. Next to this vineyard, there are extremely old terraces that were abandoned with phylloxera. We are rebuilding these terraces and planting these same 32 grapes, using the same original technics and not using any machines.
This vineyard produces extraordinary wines and for me this is one of the most beautiful in the Douro. The idea is to preserve it as an open-air museum.
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Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA »

Moses Botbol wrote:Jorge:

In honor of your visit to the forum, I had a '03 RP Duas Quintas Reserva Especial last night. What a rock star wine and quite a value at that. :yumyum:

What will it take to have Portuguese wines be considered the equal to other European countries on the top tier (or any tier)? Portuguese wines still seem to be an outlier compared to France, Italy, and Spain.

Hi Moses,
I am glad you have enjoyed the 03. The Duas Quintas Reserva and D.Q. Reserva Especial have indeed a tremendous aging capacity.
We need time to have Portuguese wines on the top tier. Many worldwide specialists consider that Portugal is now producing world-class wines but consumers don’t. So basically, we (Portuguese wine producers) just have to continue to work hard to promote our wines in the export markets (as we port producers did during many, many decades).
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Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA »

Christian Gollnick wrote:Dear Jorge:
Thank you for spending the time with us here and answering our questions - very much appreciated.
Porto and Gaia have seen a dramatic rise in tourism over the last 10 years. This must be very good news for your company, as your amazingly beautiful lodge is in the perfect location and I'm sure that the amount of Port consumed and sold to tourists is quite sizable and important to RAMOS PINTO. How much of your Port and Wine production is sold directly at your lodge?
I'm also happy to see that the tourism seems to have discovered the Douro Valley. I know that you use sometimes Quinta da Ervamoira for guest entertainment and you have also a nice little museum attached to the property - but it's so far away from everything else... Does RAMOS PINTO have any plans to establish another visitor center in the Douro, for example at Quinta do Bom Retiro? It always has something magic to taste wines near the vineyards where they are coming from...

Thanks for keeping up the good work... your company has great wines and it's a pleasure to deal with the staff at RAMOS PINTO!!!
Dear Christian,
Never before has the north of Portugal, and particularly the cities of Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia, received as many foreign tourists as it did in the last couple of years.
Since Port Wine is a national identity product, tourists want to visit the cellars and learn about Port Wine and the vast heritage that these Houses keep in their lodges.
Therefore, tourism is becoming more relevant to the company’s performance and it’s a fact that the Visitors Reception Centre is now an important market for us.
Tourism is also increasing in the Douro Valley and Ramos Pinto is proud to have been one of the first (if not, the first) players to have invested in the Douro Superior, by opening to public Quinta de Ervamoira since 1997 (for 20 years now).
We know that Quinta de Ervamoira is so far away from everything but this is one of the main reasons why visitors like it so much!
As for the Quinta do Bom Retiro, we are currently studying this possibility. It’s already possible to visit and taste wines in the Quinta but, for now, in a very limited and exclusive way. It’s a project for a near future!
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Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA »

Bradley Bogdan wrote:Jorge,

First off, thank you so much for your time. I know we all love to hear the insights of those who labor to create the wines we adore and enjoy. I love that you've mentioned the Ramos-Pinto '83 VP a couple times in this thread, as it was one of my favorite wines in my very first tasting with this group. Now for a few questions!

With all of the research into grape varieties and concentration on planting the "main 5" over the past few decades, do you think this has made it easier, harder, or not had an effect on producers that have now looked to those same grapes for distinctive dry reds?

What is your "go-to" wine to help someone not familiar with Port experience it properly?

Do you think the winegrowers of the Douro are in a good position to handle the challenges of climate change? What do you see as the biggest challenges you and others will face?

Thank you again!


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Dear Bradley,
I appreciate your words.
I am convinced that, Ramos Pinto made everyone’s life easier by selecting exceptional quality grapes, but Douro Valley wine producers are not “locked” to the 5 “recommended” grape varieties. Everyone has the right to plant and to vinify any of the approximately 125 indigenous grapes.
My go-to wine is the Ramos Pinto 10 y.o. port. Impossible not to love it!
As to climate change, bear in mind that our grape varieties are very resistant to hot and dry climates. Nevertheless, we might have to face more extreme temperatures in the future (like anywhere else, I guess). So this why Ramos Pinto is studying now solutions in the viticulture field.
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Roy Hersh
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Roy Hersh »

Thank you Jorge for you incisive responses to the questions this week. I believe there is much to learn here and this will remain as a lasting legacy about this point in time for the history of Ramos Pinto. Your candor and time spent, is truly appreciated!
Ambition driven by passion, rather than money, is as strong an elixir as is Port. http://www.fortheloveofport.com
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Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA
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Location: Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal

Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA »

Roy Hersh wrote:It would be great if you could tell us a little bit about your own launch of wines.

What inspired you to do this separately from RP?

Also, along the same lines, what does your range of wines consist of?


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Here's the story of the Quinta da Touriga:

After dedicating more than 50 years of his life to the Douro Valley viticulture and few years before he passed away, my father, José António Ramos Pinto Rosas, decided to make his last dream come true, i.e. to create the “dream estate” for the production of Port and Douro wines.

After a long and detailed study of the Region and with the help of topographic maps, he found a property, in the Douro Superior near Vila Nova de Foz Côa, with the ideal characteristics (altitude, exposition to the sun, soils, etc.) for the production of top quality wines.

At the beginning of the 1990’s, aged 72, José António bought the property where he decided to put all his know-how. He started from scratch and planted a vineyard of 8,5 hectares, carefully selecting the grape varietals, to suit the climate and the very hard rocky, poor soil made of “xisto” (slate). No vineyards had ever been planted here before.

His decision (unique until then) of planting a Quinta with more than 80% of Touriga Nacional, made José António decide to call the Quinta, Touriga. Despite the fact that this grape variety has very low yields, he was probably the first person to consider that Touriga Nacional was one of the best Portuguese varieties.

When my father passed away (in 1996) I have inherited Quinta da Touriga and decided in 2001 to make a wine in his homage, with the vineyards he has planted. Since the first vintage was released, Quinta da Touriga-Chã has been considered by many Portuguese and International wine writers, in a very consistent basis, as being one of the best produced in the Douro and in Portugal.

In 2004 I have built a state of the art winery and today I produce very limited quantities of only 2 wines; Quinta da Touriga-Chã and Puro.
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Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA
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Re: JORGE ROSAS

Post by Adriano Ramos Pinto Vinhos SA »

Roy Hersh wrote:Thank you Jorge for you incisive responses to the questions this week. I believe there is much to learn here and this will remain as a lasting legacy about this point in time for the history of Ramos Pinto. Your candor and time spent, is truly appreciated!
Dear Roy and All Port Lovers,
It was a great pleasure to participate at the FTLOP forum! Thank you all for the great questions!
I look forward to see you all in Porto and/or at the Douro.
All the best [cheers.gif]
Jorge
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