Port producers raise €100,000 for charity

Last week, 25 Port producers handed over a cheque for €100,000 to a charity for underprivileged children in the Douro valley – one of the poorest areas in Western Europe.

Picture credit: Axel Probst

The money was raised through a project called O-Port-Unidade, which was established by German wine journalist and Port lover Axel Probst, with the sum going to Portuguese charity Bagos Douro (meaning Berries of the Douro), which supports minors in the valley.

Source of the funds were 5,000 bottles of a special vintage Port created using grapes from the 2013 vintage that were foot-trodden by 25 leading Port producers.

With each bottle worth €20, the production has raised €100,000 for the charity.

The general director of the charitable organisation, Luisa Amorim said that the large donation would hugely benefit youngsters in the Douro through educational programmes.

”With the money, we are able to finance special education programmes to increase the chances of our children in the future,” she commented.

The collaborative Vintage Port may have been created for charity, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t made without quality in mind, and it has received first-rate reviews from a range of wine writers, including a Wine Advocate score of 94 points.

Click here for more information on the project, and, for German-speaking Port enthusiasts, click here to order a copy of Axel Probst’s book on Port, which will be translated into English next year.

Pictured foot-treading the grapes for the Port in the image above is a Who’s Who of fortified winemakers (left to right): Dirk Niepoort (Niepoort), Antonio Agrellos (Quinta do Noval), Antonio Saraiva (Rozes), Jorge Dias (Dalva), George Sandeman (Sandeman), Charles and Martin Symington (Symington), Francisco Ferreira (Quinta do Vallado), Miguel Roquette (Quinta do Crasto), Oscar Quevedo (Quevedo), Manuel Cabral (IVDP), Carlos Flores (Andresen), Tiago Alves de Sousa (Alves de Sousa), Jorge Manuel Pintao (Pocas), Joao Roseira (Quinta do Infantado), Joao Nicolau de Almeida (Ramos Pinto), Paulo Coutinho (Quinta do Portal), Pedro Sa (Vallegre), Manuel Silva (Rozes), Jorge Borges (Pintas), Sophia Bergqvist (Quinta de la Rosa), Pedro Silva Reis (Real Companhia Velha), Antonio Amorim (Quinta Nova), Luisa Olazabal (Quinta do Vale Meao) and Luis Sottomayor (Ferreira).