I have always loved port, maybe this is because my father loves it, maybe because of the military tradition of port at the end of formal dinners (nb. always pass to the left and don’t you dare spill a drop). And in the world of port it was Quinta do Noval of which my father raved the most; one of the oldest, and arguably the greatest, port houses in the world, situated along a steep hillside in the heart of the Douro Valley. So a trip to Portugal and the Noval manor house and vineyards was a dream come true.
The photographs include a view of the steeps through the manor house buildings, a view across the steeps as they lie waiting, in the shade, for the sun, and a photograph taken an hour later looking down on the estate (the manor house is on camera left) with a climbing the sun starting to touch the vines. As I’m sentimental I have included a photo taken at dawn the next morning, as I clambered around the steeps, of the (female) estate dog, Sebastian, who must have seen me wandering around by my lonesome and decided to come and keep my company, making sure I did not get lost in the maze of levels and stairs which comprise the estate. And finally a portrait of Christian Seely, CEO of Axa Millesimes, at the nearby Quinta da Romaneira.
I um’d and ah’d when it came to the portrait; I had already taken a frame of Christian Seely at the bottom of the valley when we arrived at Romaneira, but standing in the sun on a patch of grass next to a derelict building did not offer the extra context I wanted to associate with Christian. Thus we found ourselves on a balcony overlooking the valley with with the Duoro River in the background but in the shade; not an ideal location but I like to think the speckled sunlight which kisses his face and hands along with the geographical composition makes for interesting viewing.
