<p>We first met Luís Gil in Vimeiro, a village renowned for its mineral water and most famous as the battlegrounds that ended the first French invasion of Portugal. On that jet-lagged first day, the plan was to taste the wines of <a href="http://louisdressner.com/producers/quinta%20da%20serradinha">Serradinha</a> and <a href="http://louisdressner.com/producers/humus">Humus</a> over lunch. Rodrigo and Antonio were of course there, and the meal had been prepared by none other than Luís, a good friend of theirs. We had no idea he made wine at the time, only that he was a very talented cook and a super sweet guy. </p>
<p>Born in <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Lisbon" title="1262">Lisbon</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> Luís decided to move to <glossary term="Óbidos" title="1428">Óbidos</glossary> when he was 19. Living in the nearby village of Olho Marinho, the surrounding vines intrigued him. This curiosity quickly become a passion, and through visiting producers he liked, Luís befriended many of them and quickly became a fixture at their <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Harvest" title="521">harvests</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> By 2017, wanting to take things to the next level, he started working with Rodrigo Filipe of <a href="http://louisdressner.com/producers/humus">Humus</a> and has been there ever since. </p>
<p>That year, he also decided to rent some vineyards close to <glossary term="Óbidos" title="1428">Óbidos</glossary> and start a solo project. Now totaling 2.5 <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Hectare" title="523">hectares</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> Luís rents several <glossary term="Plot" title="1133">plots</glossary> between 40 and 120 years old. The area's fresh climate makes for longer <glossary term="Maturation" title="639">maturation</glossary> periods (the proximity to the sea makes for very foggy summer mornings) and Luís typically picks in October. The soils are <glossary term="Sand" title="909">sand</glossary> or <glossary term="Sand" title="909">sandy</glossary> <glossary term="Clay" title="301">clay</glossary> over <glossary term="Limestone" title="596">limestone</glossary> and full of fossils (the area was a delta from the late Jurassic period). The vines are 5km from the sea. In 2021, Luís will plant his first vines from his own <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Selection Massale" title="941">massale selections</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> He does 100% of the <glossary term="Viticulture" title="1103">viticulture</glossary> alone with zero <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Mechanization" title="645">mechanization</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> working <glossary term="Organic" title="746">organically</glossary> though not <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Organic Certification" title="260">certified</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> </p>
<p>The manual work extends to the <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Cellar" title="254">cellar</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> the only electric instrument being a <glossary term="Bottling" title="185">bottling</glossary> machine to cork. The wines <glossary term="Maceration" title="610">macerate</glossary> and start their <glossary term="Fermentation" title="441">fermentations</glossary> in 1000L <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Vat/Tank" title="1140">vats</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> then are <glossary term="Racking/Soutirage" title="843">racked</glossary> to <glossary term="Barrel" title="142">barrel</glossary> to finish <glossary term="Fermentation" title="441">fermenting</glossary> and <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Elevage" title="418">elevage</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> The wines are not <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Inoculation" title="542">yeasted</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> <glossary term="Filtration" title="447">filtered</glossary> or <glossary term="Fining" title="449">fined</glossary> and no <glossary term="Sulfites" title="993">S02</glossary> is used at any point of the production. To ensure top quality, only perfectly healthy grapes are <glossary term="Harvest" title="521">harvested</glossary> at <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Maturation" title="639">optimal maturity</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> </p>
<p>Three <glossary term="Cuvée" title="363">cuvées</glossary> are produced and all named after surf references (Luís' other big passion). In 2019, the total production was a mere 4000 bottles; we were late to the party and only able to import a minuscule amount. Luís intends to grow slowly each year, so hopefully we can get more for you in the future!</p>
<p>We first met Luís Gil in Vimeiro, a village renowned for its mineral water and most famous as the battlegrounds that ended the first French invasion of Portugal. On that jet-lagged first day, the plan was to taste the wines of <a href="http://louisdressner.com/producers/quinta%20da%20serradinha">Serradinha</a> and <a href="http://louisdressner.com/producers/humus">Humus</a> over lunch. Rodrigo and Antonio were of course there, and the meal had been prepared by none other than Luís, a good friend of theirs. We had no idea he made wine at the time, only that he was a very talented cook and a super sweet guy. </p>
<p>Born in <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Lisbon" title="1262">Lisbon</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> Luís decided to move to <glossary term="Óbidos" title="1428">Óbidos</glossary> when he was 19. Living in the nearby village of Olho Marinho, the surrounding vines intrigued him. This curiosity quickly become a passion, and through visiting producers he liked, Luís befriended many of them and quickly became a fixture at their <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Harvest" title="521">harvests</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> By 2017, wanting to take things to the next level, he started working with Rodrigo Filipe of <a href="http://louisdressner.com/producers/humus">Humus</a> and has been there ever since. </p>
<p>That year, he also decided to rent some vineyards close to <glossary term="Óbidos" title="1428">Óbidos</glossary> and start a solo project. Now totaling 2.5 <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Hectare" title="523">hectares</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> Luís rents several <glossary term="Plot" title="1133">plots</glossary> between 40 and 120 years old. The area's fresh climate makes for longer <glossary term="Maturation" title="639">maturation</glossary> periods (the proximity to the sea makes for very foggy summer mornings) and Luís typically picks in October. The soils are <glossary term="Sand" title="909">sand</glossary> or <glossary term="Sand" title="909">sandy</glossary> <glossary term="Clay" title="301">clay</glossary> over <glossary term="Limestone" title="596">limestone</glossary> and full of fossils (the area was a delta from the late Jurassic period). The vines are 5km from the sea. In 2021, Luís will plant his first vines from his own <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Selection Massale" title="941">massale selections</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> He does 100% of the <glossary term="Viticulture" title="1103">viticulture</glossary> alone with zero <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Mechanization" title="645">mechanization</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> working <glossary term="Organic" title="746">organically</glossary> though not <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Organic Certification" title="260">certified</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> </p>
<p>The manual work extends to the <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Cellar" title="254">cellar</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> the only electric instrument being a <glossary term="Bottling" title="185">bottling</glossary> machine to cork. The wines <glossary term="Maceration" title="610">macerate</glossary> and start their <glossary term="Fermentation" title="441">fermentations</glossary> in 1000L <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Vat/Tank" title="1140">vats</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> then are <glossary term="Racking/Soutirage" title="843">racked</glossary> to <glossary term="Barrel" title="142">barrel</glossary> to finish <glossary term="Fermentation" title="441">fermenting</glossary> and <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Elevage" title="418">elevage</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> The wines are not <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Inoculation" title="542">yeasted</glossary><span>,</span></span></span> <glossary term="Filtration" title="447">filtered</glossary> or <glossary term="Fining" title="449">fined</glossary> and no <glossary term="Sulfites" title="993">S02</glossary> is used at any point of the production. To ensure top quality, only perfectly healthy grapes are <glossary term="Harvest" title="521">harvested</glossary> at <span class="zalup"><span><glossary term="Maturation" title="639">optimal maturity</glossary><span>.</span></span></span> </p>
<p>Three <glossary term="Cuvée" title="363">cuvées</glossary> are produced and all named after surf references (Luís' other big passion). In 2019, the total production was a mere 4000 bottles; we were late to the party and only able to import a minuscule amount. Luís intends to grow slowly each year, so hopefully we can get more for you in the future!</p>
