2019 Port & Douro Vintage

A dry winter and spring brought a little over 50 percent of the average winter rainfall, and almost none fell during the summer months. There was a virtual absence of rain from May to late August, balanced by cooler summer conditions: in June, unlike much of Europe, temperatures were 4 degrees C below average at Quinta dos Canais and Quinta do Vesuvio in the Douro Superior. The Douro was spared the extreme heatwaves that blasted much of Europe that summer, damaging vines across Spain and France. By late summer the vines needed water to keep maturations on track, and some useful rain fell in late August. Symington began picking grapes for its red wines at the organically farmed Quinta do Ataide in the Vilarica Valley on 4 September, followed by Canais, Malvedos, Senhora da Ribeira and Vesuvio on 9 September. September brought clear days and moderate temperatures, and Symington paused picking on the weekend of 21 and 22 September for rain that fell in just the right amount to rehydrate later ripening varieties such as Touriga Franca. Its harvest lasted six weeks, from the first week of September to mid-October, amongst the longest in recent years. Yields were closer to average after the exceptionally small 2017 and 2018 vintages, with Symington's vines averaging 1.27 kg per vine, or 4,238 kg per hectare.

• Winter and spring: dry, with a little over 50 percent of average winter rainfall
• Summer: virtually no rain from May to late August; June 4 degrees C below average at Canais and Vesuvio
• Rain: useful rain in late August, then a pause in picking for rain on 21 and 22 September
• Harvest: six weeks, first week of September to mid-October; 1.27 kg per vine at Symington's properties

September's ideal conditions showed in the excellent balance between acidity and sugar levels. Symington called its Touriga Nacional excellent, delivering very dark and structured wines, and the dry weather that resumed after the perfectly timed rain gave very expressive aromas in its Touriga Franca. Touriga Franca, often not picked until well into October, performed particularly well for those who held their nerve, often out-performing Touriga Nacional, according to Decanter's tasting report. Lower than average temperatures during the vintage helped preserve natural freshness and definition. Whites came in with increased quantity, and Symington rated their quality exceptional. Symington names freshness and liveliness, in contrast to the concentration of recent years, as the hallmarks of the wines, and Charles Symington's words for them were "lively and exuberant".

The Symingtons bottled six single quinta Vintage Ports, released two en primeur, Quinta do Vesuvio and Dow's Quinta da Senhora da Ribeira, and held back stocks of the others for future release. Having declared Taylor for three years in a row, the Fladgate Partnership (Croft, Fonseca and Taylor) was also withholding its wines for later release. Quinta do Noval declared Quinta do Noval Nacional, having bypassed 2018.

Christian Seely of Quinta do Noval: "The purity, complexity and character of the 2019s reflect these ideal conditions." Luis Sottomayor of Ferreira and Sandeman called 2019 "a very good year with freshness and great balance", and Marcio Nobrega, head of viticulture at Sogevinus, described the wines as "aromatic with assertive tannins". Dirk Niepoort found 2019 "not as perfect as 2017" but "possibly bigger but still a very elegant year", and at the launch of his 2019 he compared the wine to the 2000 vintage.

Decanter's Richard Mayson found some of the single quinta 2019s already amazingly approachable for those who like their Port young, but said the more structured wines deserve to be kept for 15 to 20 years. He noted a green, leafy edge in some of the best wines at this stage, which alongside their purity of fruit should see them keep well into the latter half of the 21st century.

2019 was a bigger year, more in line with the average, and many properties had trouble finding enough people to pick. It was the fourth year of trials for the Symington-Hoffmann mechanical harvester, built for mountain vineyards, which Symington judged to have performed well on terraces at several of its quintas and to have largely exceeded expectations. The market price for Douro wine grapes increased substantially in 2019, likely because the two previous low-yielding harvests had raised demand.