:Symington Family Estates
{{Short description|Wine company and port wine house in Portugal}}
Symington Family Estates is a wine company and port wine house in Portugal, which owns and operates several vineyards and wineries and owns several brands of Port, Madeira wine and Douro DOC wines, including some of the oldest and most well-known Port and Madeira brands. With their extensive vineyard holdings and many Port brands, the Symingtons are often described as being a "Port empire". T. Stevenson "The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia" pg 338-339 Dorling Kindersley 2005 {{ISBN|0-7566-1324-8}}I. Wilkinson "[https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/portugal/1448077/British-families-raise-a-glass-to-300-years-of-port-in-Oporto.html British families raise a glass to 300 years of port in Oporto]" Telegraph, November 29, 2003
The companies owned by Symington Family Estates and individual family members together own 27 quintas (estates) in the Alto Douro region, and additionally lease one and operate one as a joint venture.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=9 The Symington Family] (p. 9), accessed on December 25, 2009 These 25 quintas together have {{convert|940|ha}} of vineyards.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=10 The Symington Family] (p. 10), accessed on December 25, 2009 Over 70% of the Port wine sold by Symington-owned brands is produced from grapes from these vineyards.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=6&cid=28 The Symington Family: Vineyards], accessed on December 25, 2009 Together with these land holdings, the Symingtons are the largest vineyard ownership group in the Douro. Primum Familiae Vini "[http://www.pfv.org/html/symington-history.html The Symington Family]" PFV Media Library, Accessed: December 30, 2009
The Symington family are members of the association Primum Familiae Vini.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=48 The Symington Family: Primum Familiae Vini], accessed on December 25, 2009
History
The company was founded by Andrew James Symington who arrived in Porto from Scotland in 1882, and initially joined Graham's.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=3 The Symington Family] (p. 3), accessed on December 25, 2009 In 1891 he married Beatrice Atkinson, who was descended from several generations of port wine shippers and producers, the oldest known of which was Walter Maynard, who is known to have shipped port wine already in 1652.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=2 The Symington Family: Since 1652], accessed on December 25, 2009
By 1905, Andrew James Symington was a partner of Warre & Co and in 1912 he became a partner in Dow's Port.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=4 The Symington Family] (p. 4), accessed on December 25, 2009 In 1970, the Symington family bought both Graham's and Smith Woodhouse.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=4 The Symington Family] (p. 6), accessed on December 25, 2009
In 1989, the Symington family became a partner of the Madeira Wine Company (MWC), which at that time was controlled by the Blandy family behind Blandy's, one of the Madeira companies which had formed MWC.[http://www.madeirawinecompany.com/ Madeira Wine Company], accessed on December 25, 2009 In 1989, the Symingtons also bought Quinta do Vesuvio, which they consider the finest Port quinta from the Ferreira family, which had run into economic troubles.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=11 The Symington Family: Quinta do Vesuvio, Guardian of Port’s Great Tradition], accessed on December 25, 2009 This quinta was used to introduce a high end single-quinta port in the Symington range.
From 1999, dry Douro wines were added to the Symington range,[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=13 The Symington Family: Douro DOC Wines], accessed on December 25, 2009 and in 2001, the prestige brand Chryseia was added.[http://www.symington.com/family.asp?id=4&cid=14 The Symington Family] (p. 14), accessed on December 25, 2009
Wineries and brands owned
The wineries and brands owned by Symington Family Estates are the following:[http://www.symington.com/wine.asp Symington Family Estates: Our wines], accessed on December 25, 2009
=Port wine=
- Graham's (established in 1820)
- Warre's
- Dow's
- Cockburn's
- Smith Woodhouse
- Quinta do Vesuvio
- Gould Campbell
- Quarles Harris
- Martinez
=Douro wine=
- Chryseia
- Altano
- Quinta de Roriz
Prazo de Roriz
=Madeira wine=
Through the Madeira Wine Company.
- Blandy's
- Cossart Gordon
- Leacock's
- Miles
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{official|http://www.symington.com}}
{{coord missing|Portugal}}