This unique orange pet nat was sourced from Rui Paiva, nephew of Biodynamic producer Fernando Paiva. Rui has 4 hectares of mostly 20-year-old vines in the Vinho Verde area of Felgueiras. The harvest was done by three generations, Rui, his 80-year-old father and his nephew.
tasting notes: Perfect late summer orange bubbly in the sun, herbaceous aromatics on the nose, bold citrus fruit, yellow flowers, grapefruit lemonaide spritz, bright acidity keeps this fruit forward pet nat from seeming sweet.
region: Felgueiras, Vinho Verde, Portugal
varietal: 100% Loureiro
style: sparkling (pet nat), skin contact/orange
farming & cellar: Grapes were placed in 20kg boxes and taken to Bojo do Luar (7km away) by a small pickup truck, in which only 38 boxes could fit at a time. Hence, the inspiration for the name of the wine. Grapes were destemmed and moved into "ta/has" (100-year old, 1,000L amphoras) and stomped by foot. To each amphora, 1kg of ground chestnut flowers was added and immediately mixed into the mass.
The fermentation started spontaneously after 4 days and continued slowly for three weeks. Before it was completed, with around 15g/l of residual sugar left, the mass was pressed and the wine was bottled, unfiltered with no added S02.
pairing: spicy tapas
