They say that he who wants can do more than he who is able. He was a civil engineer. But having no formal education in wine and oenology did not stop him from dedicating his life to this passion. He learned everything from his father’s books.

We are talking about Rodrigo Filipe, the body and soul of the Quinta Do Paço, in Alvorninha, a Portuguese village near Caldas da Rainha (90 kilometres from Lisbon). This 20-hectare estate, with chalky clay soil and surrounded by eucalyptus trees, was bought by his grandfather in the 1960s, but it wasn’t until the 1990s that Rodrigo’s father planted vines for his own use. Now, 30 years later, Rodrigo himself makes Humus Palheto here.

The Humus Palheto grapes come from vines influenced by the humidity of the Atlantic climate, which causes the grapes to ripen more slowly, delaying the harvest until mid-October.

Humus Palheto ferments in stainless steel tanks, with a 2-week maceration and a 12-month aging in oak barrels.

Humus Palheto is neither filtered nor clarified.