The Dynamic Douro - Modern Styles for a Classic Region

Portugal's Douro Valley is the oldest geographically designated wine region in the world - it's boundaries were formally set in the mid-1700s and for more than two centuries the international image of the region was based on sweet, fortified wine. Classic tawny and ruby ports still play an important part in the Douro's wine production but since the early 1990s dry red and white wines have also played a major part in the region's fame.

These dry wines weren't new - they had always made them but mainly for local consumption. A shift came when the Champagne firm Louis Roederer purchased the century-old Port producer Ramos Pinot in 1990 and decided the company dry wines were so good they needed to be shared. In the intervening 35 years, Ramos Pinto has continued to produce outstanding fortified wines but has gain new fame for a series of dry wines mostly marketed under the Duas Quintas label.

This time on Postcards in a Glass, host Lyn Farmer is joined by Ramos Pinto's export and marketing director Ana Rato, who tells the story of how these dry wines became famous. She also shares how these two family-owned companies became partners, and how some of Ramos Pinto's oldest styles, like aged white port, have become new hit in the market.

White port as an aperitif? Dry reds and whites pioneering plantings in the Douro Valley's most remote reaches (called the Douro Superior)? Modern twists on classic fortified wines? We've got the story here in a Postcard from the Douro and from Ramos Pinto!

If you want to see just how vibrant the Port region of the Douro Valley is, I've posted some of my photographs from the region on my website, www.loynfarmer.com. Just click on the Postcards in a Glass tab and there is a link to the photgraphs at the bottom of the page.

For more information about the wines of Ramos Pinto, connect with them at www.ramospinto.pt