Quinta das Carvalhas — Attraction in São João da Pesqueira

Would give 5 stars, dropping one due to a mutual confusion that was not cleared up by the admin staff with being upfront about tripling the pricing.

We ended up having a private jeep tour with Marcio (Mr Rabbit), who was fantastic. He gave a good history of the vineyard, insights on living in the Douro valley, and with some good humour. He stopped at multiple viewpoints including the highest vineyards where you can walk over the peak of the hill to achieve a 360 view including the southern side (the roundhouse itself at the mountains peak is closed for renovation). He pointed out different vegetation, we had the opportunity to try the grapes and oranges, and he took photos at each stop.

We went back and had a generous tasting of 3 wines (white, red, and a tawyny port) along with a charcuterie board to pair.

Now, the confusion was that we had emailed to book a minibus tour and tasting on "Tuesday 30th August, next week" and got a reply that this was confirmed about would be €12.50 each. Of course, I meant July (!) given that I said both "next week" and Tuesday 30th which doesn't exist in August 2019. Anyway, the mistake was made and we were disappointed to realise they weren't expecting us when we turned up. I understood from the front desk lady that minibus tours don't happen on Tuesday either, but to avoid disappointment they said don't worry we will organise a tour for you. At this point I felt that they realised it was a mutual error (and a small one on my part) and that they would honour the price agreed... I only started doubting that when I saw the charcuterie board(!) but by that point it was time to pay and I only lightly contested when I was told it was €35 each but paid anyway as it was such a good experience, which I had now already had/eaten anyway.

Overall, it was lovely and I do feel this company is worth supporting. It is a much more local experience and is one of the few wine companies in the Douro that remain in Portuguese hands.

The pre-tour information is very lacking though. They were sneaky in tripling the price and changing both our tour type and tasting type without telling us (we could've paid something in between for a Jeep tour with a standard tasting), and there should be more information on the website, especially since so many people could come as a day trip from Porto but are probably put off by the lack of information online.

Anyway, until their information is updated. I can tell you that a minibus tour is €12.50 and includes two wine tastings but doesn't happen everyday, and a private jeep tour is €35 and included three wine tastings with a charcuterie board and seems to be possible any time within...

Have spent a wonderful few hours exploring the table wines and ports here. As a Sommelier, I was impressed the level of knowledge of the person curating our tasting and more importantly really was when my questions got a little too technical, instead of making stuff up or ignoring the questions, he went and found the information for me.

The lighter white wines are vibrant and full of fruit, but not my style of wine. The wooded Chardonnay was young and will be so much better after 5 or 6 years in the bottle. For me the pick of the whites was the field blend that had also been oaked is as good as a white wine expressing its terrior and the skill of the wine maker gets.

The single variety Tinta Fransica will suit those who enjoy a lighter style red without bold flavours, for me it was a little tight thready in the mouth. The Reserva blend was a great example of a wine designed to be consumed shortly after bottling while we were lucky enough to taste 2020 and 2011 Premium Red blend of Vinhas Velhas. If you need a wine for a special occasion in the next 6 months then the 2011 is for you (they had some when we visited) if you have the ability to safely cellar wine the current 2020 will be bigger and more opulent than its predecessor in a...

Did the bus tour (starts at their shop), and despite us thinking it may have been geared towards an older crowd, the tour and our guide (Fernando I think) were tremendous! It was very hot on the bus, but I loved traversing up the side of the vineyards, with odd stops along the way, and I'd have thought the best views of the Duoro valley. Fernando was really knowledgeable but also really engaging- usually I zone out at parts of tours, but I was hooked on everything he said! We went back for the port tasting- had a Ruby & a tawny, and my husband and I stayed to taste a couple of white ports and a red wine too, which again Fernando helped us choose and guided us through. The tasting room is beautiful and cool, it was a shame to leave! Also ports to take home- sadly we could only carry 1 bottle (only 10eur!) as could have bought a bottle of all the ones we tried. If you're going to Duoro valley, DEFINITELY come to this one! I prebooked the bus tour by emailing them (Bruno, again very helpful!) And paying online- though they do only accept visa I think. Its one of the only Portuguese, family run Quintas in the area, so this is definitely the one to choose, and I'd highly recommend the bus tour. Well...