Founded in 1670, Warre’s is the first and the oldest British Port company established in Portugal. The name Warre’s is synonymous with the history of Port and it was a pioneer of the Port trade. For more than three hundred years the company has produced some of the greatest Ports ever made.

Andrew James Symington, ‘AJS’, became a partner in Warre’s in 1905 and by 1908 he had become its sole owner. At the time, George Warre, having acquired Quinta do Bomfim for Dow’s, had no stake in the company founded by his forebears. In an exchange of shares agreed with AJS in 1912, George Warre became once again a shareholder in Warre’s together with AJS, who simultaneously gained a position in Dow’s Port together with the responsibility of running the Douro Quintas. In the 1950s the Warre family relinquished their position in Warre’s and Dow’s leaving the Symingtons as sole owners.

Warre’s maintains its reputation as one of the finest Vintage Ports producers. The quality of the wines is assured by Warre’s own vineyards, Quinta da Cavadinha in the Pinhão Valley and Quinta do Retiro in the Rio Torto Valley, as well as Quinta da Telhada far upriver in the Douro Superior.

The term elegance is rarely absent from a description of Warre’s Vintage Ports, be they from the 19th, 20th or 21st century. Warre’s Vintages invariably reveal floral aromas and wonderful finesse on the palate giving them a sense of delicate, feminine charm.  Warre’s Vintage Ports are peerless in their expression of poise and elegance. Warre’s Vintages are underpinned by fresh acidity, derived from the cool Cavadinha vineyard. Approachable when young, Warre’s Vintage Ports develop beautifully in bottle and will stay the course for many decades.

Warre’s vineyard holdings are distributed along various locations of the Upper Douro Valley and consequently are representative of a wide cross-section of the region’s micro-climates. Each quinta possesses specific characteristics, formed by variances in altitude, aspect, gradients, grape variety mix and age of vines and soil types. This diversity brings valuable contributions from each property to Warre’s Vintage Ports.

Quinta da Cavadinha in the Pinhão Valley and Quinta do Retiro in the Rio Torto Valley provide the principal structure of Warre’s Vintage Ports. Cavadinha, due to its altitude and east-facing aspect has a cooler ripening cycle and this is reflected in the floral elegance of the wines. The cooler conditions also favour good acidity which provide freshness and delicacy. Quinta do Retiro has long been another key contributor to Warre’s Vintage Ports.  The old, mixed vineyards have as many as 30 to 40 different varieties planted together and mamy are nearly 100 years old. These vineyards give tiny yields, under half a kilogram per vine and they bring extraordinary complexity and structure to Warre’s Vintages. Quinta da Telhada, in the remote, hot and dry Douro Superior subregion provides well-ripened fruit from its mature Touriga Nacional plantings.