Quinta da Pacheca
Quinta da Pacheca is a Douro estate in Cambres with eight granite tanks and a wine tourism project.
At A Glance
- Field
- Detail
- Region
- Douro, Portugal
- Village
- Cambres
- Estate vineyards
- Approximately 75 hectares
- Range
- Douro DOC wines and Port
- Named bottle
- Pacheca Pink Port
The Producer
Quinta da Pacheca's name first appears in April 1738. It is the feminine form of Pacheco, referring to owner Mariana Pacheco Pereira. The estate's vineyard history reaches the sixteenth century, when its vines belonged to the monasteries of Salzedas and São João de Tarouca. A 1551 document is cited for that history.
José Freire de Serpa Pimentel bought the property in 1903 and began modernizing its vineyards and structures. DOC wine commercialization under the Quinta da Pacheca and Quinta de Vale Abraão brands began in 1977. The Serpa Pimentel family remains involved through its fourth generation. In 2012, the families of Paulo Pereira and Maria do Céu Gonçalves took ownership after careers in international food and wine distribution.
Place
Quinta da Pacheca sits near the Douro River's left bank, in Cambres, within Lamego municipality. Its vineyards lie within the Douro valley landscape classified by UNESCO in 2001. Cambres locates the property, while Douro names the regional wine country around it.
Wines
The still wine range covers white, rosé and red Douro DOC styles. The Port range includes white, tawny, vintage and ruby wines.
Pacheca Pink Port carries the Porto appellation and is made from Tinta Roriz, Tinta Barroca, Touriga Nacional and Mourisco. It has 19.5% alcohol by volume and 101 grams per litre of residual sugar. The product is intended to be drunk fresh as an aperitif or in cocktails.
In The Glass
Pacheca Pink Port has an intense pink colour and a nose marked by cherries and raspberries. Freshness and good acidity carry cherry and grapefruit across the palate. Red varieties are vinified to extract as little colour as possible, while clarification and fermentation at low temperatures preserve fresh, fruity aromas.
Final Word
Quinta da Pacheca formally began guided estate visits and direct wine sales in 1995. The Wine House Hotel Quinta da Pacheca opened in 2009, adding hospitality to the estate's wine project.