For many years now, we’ve been shouting from the proverbial mountaintops about the savory, Barolo-esque wines coming out of Portugal’s Bairrada region, so if one’s to be featured, it must exceed the greatest of expectations. We knew we were off to a great start when seeing the legendary “Niepoort” name printed on the label’s top left, but nothing could’ve prepared us for the sensory experience Lagar de Baixo’s 2018 delivered.
Drawing on old, biodynamic vines, this blasts out scintillating dark fruits framed by swirling calcareous minerality and the soft yet formidable structure that allows it to shine now or in the years to come. In short: this is very serious, Piedmont-level stuff at an extremely desirable price, and it might be the first red I reach for when making the case for Portugal’s big-league status. We know choosing a single most undervalued wine region is a risky proposition, but we’re tempted to throw our hat in Bairrada’s ring—today’s offer is the perfect evidence! For those wondering why we place so much emphasis on “Niepoort,” keep on reading.
The Niepoort family are living legends in the Portuguese wine world. They’ve been celebrated as one of the elite Port producers for nearly 200 years, but it’s current proprietor Dirk Niepoort’s dazzlingly complex, unfortified wines that sets them ahead of the pack. Dirk took over in the late 1980s and quickly redirected his family’s considerable resources (longstanding relationships with farmers of centenarian vines; a family of cellarmasters who’ve worked in generational lockstep with the Niepoorts) toward producing table wines that reflected Portugal’s thrilling but oft-overlooked terroir and history. He makes no excuses about his passion and ambition: one of his bottlings even carries the name “Coche,” as in Coche-Dury, producer of some of the most sought-after and expensive white wines in the world. As borne out by today’s Lagar de Baixo Baga, Dirk fully delivers on that vigor and zeal, minus the price tag.
For his most elegant and transparent reds, Dirk turns south from his native Douro to the Bairrada region. This cool, coastal area had been on Dirk’s viticultural wishlist since the 1990s, and he finally broke into Bairrada with the 2012 purchase of the Quinto de Baixo estate. He immediately converted the farming to organic and biodynamic, going so far as to move to the estate to oversee the conversion personally. In this sun-drenched yet maritime climate, grapes are able to retain invigorating freshness while developing haunting perfume and soil-driven minerality. The Baga vines Dirk farms average over 80 years old, with many pushing over the century mark, their roots digging deep into the calcareous clay soils that aren’t wholly unlike those of Dirk’s beloved Burgundy. This combination of soil, old vines, and coastal climate makes for wines packing incredible concentration into shockingly light-footed frames.
Dirk’s winemaking allows Bairrada Baga’s most unique qualities to shine through. Hand picked, spontaneously fermented with partial whole clusters, and then 20 months of aging in very old, very neutral 2500L casks. The result is beautiful. In the glass, it’s a shimmering ruby and it leads with rose petals, black raspberry, ripe red cherries, and orange zest. A clayey minerality and delicately spicy herbaceousness from the stems underpins the surprisingly fresh fruit aromas. It’s medium-bodied and the structure is firm but fine, with vibrant acidity and a faintly dusty coating of tannins. Enjoy it slightly chilled around 60 degrees in Burgundy stems as you would a Barolo. If you can get your hands on it, Bairrada is famous for suckling pig, which would be the absolute perfect pairing for this, but it’s also right at home next to some braised pork shoulder or a garlicky sausage and bean stew. This is a true “fine wine,” with serious enough structure to lay down for years, but it offers so much pleasure right now and comes in at such a reasonable price, we strongly encourage going in on a case!
