Producer Information
Luis Pato is a high-profile, well-regarded and innovative wine producer in the northern Portuguese region of Bairrada. The proprietor, Luis Pato, is a champion of the local red grape Baga and produced his first wine from the variety in 1980. Today, Pato has a diverse wine portfolio that includes still, sweet, and sparkling wines. The estate is made up of 60 hectares (148 acres) of vineyard land spread throughout nine vineyards around Bairrada. The more southern of these have chalky-clay soils, while the more northerly vineyards are composed of sand. Along with Baga, the vineyards are planted with a combination of Touriga Nacional, Tinto Cão, Bical, Maria Gomes and Cerceal da Bairrada. Pato himself is widely credited with helping to revive both Baga and the Bairrada region. He planted ungrafted Baga vines, destemmed the variety for vinification (which was unusual at the time) and began aging Baga in new French oak barrels – also a novelty. Pato also explored blending the Baga variety with Touriga Nacional. In 1999, Luis Pato began to label his wines with the regional denomination, Beiras. Luis Pato’s top wines include the single-vineyard reds Vinha Pan, Vinha Barrosa, and Quinta do Ribeirinho Pé Franco. The latter is a concentrated red wine made from low-yeilding, ungrafted Baga. He also makes premium white wines, led by Vinha Formal – a wine made from 100 percent Bical grown on chalky-clay soils.
