Hugo Mendes, Pitau Branco - 2024

Fast Facts:

Winemaker(s): Hugo Mendes
Region: Alenquer → Lisboa → Portugal
Varietal(s): Arinto, Fernão Pires, Alvarinho, Vital
Terroir: Clay and limestone soils, cool Atlantic air off the nearby coast
Serving Temp: 45-52°F

Hugo Mendes earned a degree in biotechnological engineering and then went and did the far more sensible thing: making wine. He started at the bottom at Quinta da Murta in Bucelas, the cool, Arinto-loving corner just north of Lisbon, and worked his way up to head winemaker by 2010. The whole time he kept a blog with one stated goal of uncomplicating wine for regular people, and, well, you can see why we like him!

In 2016 he became the first in Portugal to crowdfund a wine label, inviting drinkers to become patrons and back him before a single bottle existed. By 2019 he'd left Quinta da Murta to go all in on his own name and chasing the old, overlooked Lisboa grapes most people skip right past: Fernão Pires, Vital, Arinto. That last one Arinto, he'll happily tell you, is the grape of his heart.

Pitau is his family's nickname back in Ribeira de Santarém, where he grew up, so this bottle is basically a love letter home. It's a single-vineyard blend of Arinto, Fernão Pires, Alvarinho, and Vital from the western edge of Alenquer, close enough to the coast to catch the Atlantic chill. Picked in late August, fermented and rested in stainless steel for nine months. Bright n' salty.

Why'd we pick it?

The biotech engineer turned winemaking is its own romance, especially when you insert in something after our own heart: demystifying wine for everyone! That's literally why this club exists, and so we feel a special bond with Hugo. And this one ringing in at 11.5%, it's a nice chill one in the lineup. Plus cats!

Field Notes

• Tastes like: Citrus peel, green apple, and a bit of peach with a fresh herbal punch. Finishes with lots of minerality that pulls you right back in.
• Serve it from the fridge and let it warm in your glass for a good 10.
• Food Pairings: A porch pounder! Tip a tin of boquerones onto grilled bread with butter and Castelvetrano olives on the side. Manila clams with garlic, a glug of the wine itself works nicely, and a bunch of cilantro, then mop the broth with aforementioned grilled bread. Slumpy grilled Shishito peppers pan with a squeeze of lemon and flaky salt. Or, fish tacos and quick-pickled red cabbage.