MCF Rare Wine
Luis Pato Mega Offer
A lunch on a Monday.
Good.
A lunch, on a Monday, at Roberta's.
Great.
A lunch, on a Monday, at Roberta's, with Maria Pato taking us on a deep dive through her father Luis Pato's wines?
Well, I'll let you come up with the superlative for that, but I think you can understand why I am so excited to recall this...
(And a special thanks to Lewis, Pato’s importer, for putting it together!)
Those of you longtimers will know just how fond we are of the wines of Luis Pato in Portugal's Bairrada zone.
He's the master of Baga...of seriously ageworthy Baga...that ages as gracefully and profoundly as Barolo does...
In fact, I would say you could easily call Pato the 'Bartolo Mascarello of Bairrada'...
...that is if Mascarello made a couple dozen different wines and excelled at everything from fresh, inexpensive whites and sparklers, to more serious whites and reds that can age 30+ years...
Anyway, the point is that this man is very important to Bairrada and, in my opinion, is very important to Portugal as a whole.
I'd say the only thing counting against him is that me makes too much good wine...thus making my choice of what to offer in my newsletters a very difficult decision.
So, rather than have to make such a decision - I've just decided to offer out all of the available wines we had at the lunch...
...because...why not?
LUIS PATO
WHITES
Branco Parcela Candido 2022 - 100% Cercial from the chalk-packed Formal vineyard. Green fruits, spice, fragrant, bracing, and elegantly textured. Young and fresh now, but all kinds of nutty/savory complexity waiting to emerge in the coming years.
Quinta do Ribeirinho Sercialinho 2021 - A very serious wine made of 50+ year old Sercialinho vines. Fermented and aged in large chestnut for six months, with a further 18 months in bottle, this beautiful wine is, in its current youthful state, zippy, aromatic and green fruited with fantastic brininess on the very bracing finish.
Branco Vinha Formal 2002 - the first fully mature example on the offer, the Formal 2002 is made of 100% Bical, from the aforementioned chalk-dense Formal vineyard. It's wonderfully floral, waxy, creamy, nutty, savory and flat out delicious.
Branco Vinhas Velhas 1990 - this was the first vintage of the old vine white, which is a blend of roughly equal parts of Bical, Cercial, Maria Gomes and Sercialinho, and, oh boy, if you want to experience the genius of Pato's whites (and of aged whites in general), this is your glass. It's wise and developed, with its nutty, savory, waxy, salty brilliance, but it's the bracing, floral, linear focus that, in combination with all of that wisdom, makes for one insanely delicious wine.
REDS
Vinha Pan 2018 - the defining characteristic of all of the Vinha Pan at the lunch was, for me, their insanely herbaceous (think amaro or vermouth type of herbaceous) nuance that lurk underneath the classic, rosy and soil driven character. The vibrancy of the youthful Baga fruit is just delightful.
Vinha Barrio 2008 - the '08 Barrio is spectacular. Unmistakably Baga and classically Pato in its haunting, floral profile, but it really stood out for its chiseled, stony, meaty breadth. (It was great with the pizza!)
Vinha Barrio 2000 - the 2000 is decidedly brighter than the brawnier '08, but it still retains that deep, dark, savory tint you expect from this site. The brightness and aromatic lift in this 2000 make for on incredibly elegant wine, and one that's running wide open right now.
Vinha Tinto Vinhas Velhas 2000 375ml (half bottle) - if you ever have a hankering for fully mature, beautifully deep, herbaceous, aromatic and earthy Baga, but only want a glass or two, well, it's your lucky day. ;). Seriously, though, this one is fabulous right now!
You may order by calling 212.255.8870.
Matt Franco
MCF Rare Wine, Ltd
249 West 13th Street NYC 10011
212.255.8870
Looking for a wine you loved from a past newsletter or a favorite you can't find anywhere? Email Raphael at raphael@mcf-rarewine.com, and we'll do our best to find it for you!
