Pintas Character Tinto 2023

Pintas Character Tinto 2023 is a highly regarded red from Portugal's Douro, made by the prestigious Wine & Soul winery, founded by winemakers Sandra Tavares da Silva and Jorge Serôdio Borges. It's known for faithfully expressing the complexity and richness of the Douro terroir.

The Wine Advocate
RP 93

Reviewed by: Luis Gutiérrez

The 2023 reds are very well made, with restrained ripeness, good freshness and balance, and well-integrated oak. They're powerful yet elegant, and the 2023 Pintas Character, from grapes from five old-vine plots with mixed varieties, is an excellent example of this profile.

It fermented in lagares, foot-trodden, and then aged for 22 months in used French oak barrels. It's medium to full-bodied, with abundant, fine, grainy tannins, finishing with pleasant sweet-spice notes.

31,336 bottles were produced. The wine was bottled in July 2025.

Wine & Soul is the project of couple Jorge Serôdio and Sandra Tavares. They own 45 hectares across different Douro villages, 80% of which are old vines. Total production is about 180,000 bottles.

2023 had a rainy spring and moderate temperatures, letting the soils replenish their water reserves after several years of severe drought, particularly 2022. Spring was stable, with good flowering and fruit set, giving higher yields than in 2022 and 2020.

Summer was hot but without extremes, allowing slow, balanced ripening. The grapes showed good phenolic ripeness, well-defined aromas and balanced acidity. The 2023 reds are very well made, with restrained ripeness, good freshness and balance, and perfectly integrated oak. The result is wines that are powerful yet elegant.

2024 had more classic, balanced conditions: a winter with good rainfall, properly replenishing water reserves; a stable spring, favouring balanced vegetative growth; and a moderate summer, with good day-night temperature swings and no heatwaves, promoting slow, complete ripening.

Published: 16 April 2026