João Pato White

The Duckman wines express the true character of Bairrada’s indigenous varietals and its exceptional maritime influence. There are no indications of the region on the labels, done intentionally to demonstrate an acute sense of place and varietal typicity through minimal intervention in the cellar.  Maria Pato, the daughter of Luis Pato, created this project because of her love of the region and varietals, so much so that she felt constrained by the standards of Bairrada wine making. For both of them only the indigenous varietals can be Bairrada wine, not imports that want to claim it as their own identity. Luis and Maria work from two main vineyards, Amoreira da Gândara which is composed of mostly sandy soils, and Óis do Bairro which is composed of mostly chalky-clay soils. 

Averaging 20 years old, the vines are planted on 2.8 hectares of sandy soils called Amoreira da Gândara. The vineyards are farmed sustainably and the grapes are harvested in early September, de-stemmed and spends a short time on skins before spontaneous fermentation begins partially in stainless steel with temperature control, which lasts three weeks. Aged three months in stainless steel. Not fined or filtered. Strong acidity, hints of white plum.

Country Portugal / Bairrada