2022 Luis Pato Sercialinho Quinta Ribeirinho

Full bottle with wax seal 1,410 g. Sercialinho is a unique grape bred by the study centre in Batalha in the Beira Litoral province, and was sent to Bairrada in 1960. It`s a cross between Sercial (from Madeira) and Alvarinho. At that time, Luis Pato`s father, João, planted a vineyard in Quinta do Ribeirinho and during all those years that variety was blended into their Vinhas Velhas white. But in 2013 Pato decided to make a wine with Sercialinho, and has been making this wine since 2019 after that first trial in 2013. The free-run juice is fermented and aged 6 months in chestnut casks. Bottled April 2023. TA 9.5 g/l.
Pale greeny gold. More cedary than the 2023, almost a touch of resin, more evolved, but still with piercing freshness of grapefruit-like citrus and green fruits plus a touch of white blossom. Fuller in the mouth than the 2023 with a more chewy texture and gaining depth in the bottle. Fruit purity and freshness are terrific as the foundation of the complex flavours. Mouth-watering but remarkably balanced acidity and a grapefruit-fresh aftertaste with an undertow of riper yellow fruits. 17+ points