Quinta de La Rosa

When the world was created, Douro was one of the chosen places to represent perfection! And I get more certain of that each time I return!

This time we came to get to know Quinta de La Rosa, located very near the center of Pinhão. This Quinta, very familiar, was offered as a Christening present to Claire Feuheerd, grandmother of the current manager (Sophia Bergqvist), in 1906. The wine export company was sold in the 30’s, however, the La Rosa was kept and managed by Claire.

In 1988, Sophia and her father Tim Bergqvist decided to restart the family business, launching Quinta de La Rosa as one of the first producers and bottlers of Port wine at Douro.

Nowadays, the Quinta is managed by Sophia, with her brother’s help, and the oenologist Jorge Moreira, who’s been creating a very strong connection to the brand these past few years.

The vineyards at Vale do Inferno 

The 55 hectares of vineyards, located in the heart of Alto Douro, on the right margin of the river, allow an annual production of 50000 liters of Port and the triple of table wines.

Quinta de La Rosa is in the family for several generations now, but also several generations have been working here, the reason why it’s so familiar and cozy.

We came to La Rosa to know the Hotel and enjoy the opening of its new restaurant, A Cozinha da Clara, as the name suggests, an homage to Clara Feuheerd’s memory.

First Impression
There’s no possible description when talking about Douro!

Quinta de La Rosa stays in one of Douro’s hillsides, with the vineyards going down to the river in terraces, with mixing colors that create nature in perfect harmony.

We were welcomed by a young and nice team, in a reception that’s also the shop and tasting room for Quinta’s visitors. A modern space, where wine, olive oil, and vinegar are displayed.
From here we were accompanied to our bedroom, at Quinta Amarela, very close to Casa Principal (main building).

 Bedrooms
The Quinta has been receiving guests for more than 20 years now, developing a refuge for the Douro (and its wines) lovers. And, in 2012, Quinta de La Rosa was redeveloped to accommodate more guests, with more quality.

 Quinta Amarela

The Quinta has 21 bedrooms and a house with capacity for 6. There are bedrooms at Casa de Familia, where we have direct contact with 100 years of history; also at the vineyard, which names refer to family members, and there are also two houses, Quinta Amarela (where we stayed), with 5 bedrooms (but that you can rent as a whole); and Quinta das Lamelas, with capacity for 6 people.

Quinta Amarela

So Quinta Amarela has 5 bedrooms, and a common space, a living room with all the comfort of a family home. Also we also have a terrace and private pool. We stayed in the bedroom Amarela 1, but it is interesting to think of joining 4 couples and rent the entire house to us!

Our bedroom was a Superior Double, more rustic than the recently renewed bedrooms of the main house. The Bed was comfortable, and the view from one of the windows was Douro. At our disposal, we had water, tea, and coffee.

However, I missed some little things, like a welcoming detail and a robe (I can’t live without a robe!). The best of Quinta Amarela is maybe its terrace and pool, which views take us to the paradise called Douro!

 Restaurants
The Cozinha da Clara, a space to honor Sophia’s grandmother, is the only restaurant at the Quinta, opened in May 2017, and the reason that brought us here.

A space that imitates the interior of a cask, with family paintings around the walls, but in my opinion, it could be less modern and more traditional. Here we had breakfast and dinner!

We had breakfast on the balcony, where we get the sensation we can touch the river! Amazing!

Small repair for the fact of the eggs being an extra option on the breakfast menu, even more in a place where the majority of the guests are British.

For dinner, Cozinha da Clara‘s proposal rests on national flavors, revisited by the young chef Pedro Cardoso. A signature cuisine, transporting not only Douro’s heritage, with the olive oils, wines, bread, and sausages, but also some national flavors from different places like the suckling pig or the sardines.

Sardine samosa with peppers 

 Suckling pig and mushroom tureen

Harmonizing were obviously the good wines of the Quinta, from the Rosé to the Reserva Tinto, and of course, the classic Colheita 2008 and the Tawny 20 years, in a “challenge” to accompany the chocolate and red fruits based dessert.

A new cuisine, a new restaurant joining the each time more interesting, but still short, gastronomic offer at Douro.
Services
Quinta de La Rosa offers a series of options and activities for making the stay a moment of real contact with Douro, with wine, the vineyards, and nature.

So a visit to the cellar is mandatory, and see the entire production of the wine, as well as tasting it to finish with a plus.

At La Rosa is possible to accompany all the production process, from the vineyards to the bottling. The visit is possible every day from April to October, at 11 am.

 

 
At the end of the visit, you have a wine taste at the shop in the main house, where you can also buy the wines, olive oil or vinegar.
During the harvest season, September or October (in normal weather years!), you can also take part of it.

   

But the stay at Quinta de La Rosa is full of activities puting us in direct contact with nature, long walks, namely to the Vale do Inferno vineyard (around 20 min walking along the vineyards), a true work of art; or to Casa das Lamelas (around 1h30), allowing us to see Douro and the terraces from a very high location.

It is possible to make a picnic, organized in different places around the Quinta, always with the best view over Douro.

Around the Quinta, you can visit Pinhão, see the historic train station and taste the amazing things of the Qualifer butchery, or even take a longer trip to the very beautiful town of Provesende.

 
But, for those just simply wanting to relax at La Rosa, the options are as simple as enjoying both the pools, if the weather allows, or simply rest in one of the many spots while reading a good book.

During my stay, I would’ve changed some details (as I referred), that not being serious, could’ve taken the experience to another level.

La Rosa is located in a little piece of heaven, with astonishing views and contact with nature, making it a magical place.

Quinta de La Rosa 
Bedrooms from 125€
Quinta de La Rosa, 5085-215  – Pinhão (Douro)
+351 254 732 254
bookings@quintadelarosa.com

Versão Portuguesa

 Photos: Flavors & Senses

Disclaimer
We were at Quinta de La Rosa by invitation, whereas this does not alter our work, being the opinion and the text of the exclusive responsibility of the author.

This entry was posted in Hotels and tagged , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. Post a comment or leave a trackback: Trackback URL.

Post a Comment

Your email is never published nor shared. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>

*
*

  • FLAVORS & SENSES AWARDS

  • PARTNERS

    Seeing the World with

    Travelling with

    In the Company of




  • Meta