Quinta da Vacariça, a French sommelier making biodynamic wines in Portugal’s Bairrada region
François Chasans was a sommelier in France, and he first came to Portugal in 1998. He came for an agricultural fair in Santarem (in the Tejo region), and there he tried his first Bairrada wine. He was smitten, and decided he wanted to make wine in the region. A year later, he had bought his first vineyard.
It wasn’t the obvious place to make wine. When he came to Bairrada, he says the wines here were considered to be the worst wines in Portugal where the malolactic fermentation was done inside the bottle and everything was rough. At that stage, the best wines from Portugal were thought to be from the Dão region.
But François was interested in history, and he was particularly struck by the wines made at the Buçaco palace, which helped him understand the history of the region. He began growing his holdings, and made his first wine in 2008, with the help of Mario Sergio of Bageiras, an important producer in the region.
He now has 7 hectares of vines, all formed biodynamically. The vines were established by planting rootstock and then grafting into this. In 2015 he tasted the Encruzado from Buçaco and as a result he decided to plant some of this variety. But in 2021 he had more than half of his Encruzado crop stolen.
François says that the biggest strength of Bairrada is the acidity that the wines have. There’s a big diurnal temperature amplitude. Here, the effect of the Atlantic is strong.
In the cellar, he uses a range of vessels: tonels, clay and concrete. But he thinks that the large-format wood is the best
When he started Luis Pato told him it would be impossible to do what he wanted to in this region. He was told you can only make a good Baga every five years because of the climate. This made him push to achieve full ripeness.
In the first years he went for maxiumum maturity, but then in 2013 and 2014 he realised ripeness wasn’t an issue and he didn’t have the same issues that others did. The tradition in the region (because of the challenges of maturity) is to do three harvests with one crop: sparkling (as a sort of green harvest), then tinto, then garrafeira. He doesn’t work like that. After 2013 and 2014 he realised that ripeness wasn’t the issue and decided to aim for 12.5% alcohol rather than aim at maximum maturity.
Baga is a versatile variety, he says. In order to appreciate these wines, they need time, and the bottle needs time after opening.
THE WINES
Vacariça Baga 2019 Bairrada, Portugal
12.5% alcohol. Fermented and matured in an Italian amphora. Complex nose of spices, undergrowth and black cherries. Rich on the palate with burly, sweet black cherry and blackberry fruit with some inherent richness. Bold with sweet fruit and some wild spicy notes. There’s a sense of richness to this wine, with the bold fruit complemented by fine spicy notes, finishing lively. 92/100
Quinta da Vacariça Garrafeira Terroir de Cardosas 2013 Bairrada, Portugal (magnum)
14% alcohol. A hot vintage. Warm nose of sweet cherries with some earthy notes and an appealing spiciness. The palate is concentrated and richly fruited with sweet cherries. It’s bold and rich with a lovely sweet core and notes of clay, spice and earth. Broad and textural with nice intensity and depth. 94/100
Quinta da Vacariça Garrafeira Terroir de Cardosas 2014 Bairrada, Portugal
This was the wet vintage where there were three weeks of rain during harvest. This is earthy and savoury with some spice and mineral notes as well as some cherry and plum fruit. Quite firm and structural with grip on the finish. Has a distinctive savouriness. 92/100
Quinta da Vacariça Garrafeira Terroir de Cardosas 2015 Bairrada, Portugal
This was a really good vintage here. Structured and dense with firm black cherry and blackberry fruit with notes of earth and spice, and some tar. Grippy and dense. There’s a lot of fruit here but also quite a bit of structure. Great balance: not too much extraction, not too much structure, but a sense of harmony. Finishes grippy, but there’s so much potential here. 95/100
Quinta da Vacariça Garrafeira Terroir de Cardosas Tonel 23 2011 Bairrada, Portugal
Earth and spice on the nose with sweet herbs and some cherry fruit. Lovely texture on the palate: earthy and spicy with some notes of decay, but also good structure and weight. There’s immense concentration and depth here, with ripe fruit but also development. Firm, still, but with lots of complexity. 94/100
Quinta da Vacariça Garrafeira Terroir de Cardosas 2008 Bairrada, Portugal
This is the first vintage, made at Bageiras. Lively, complex and spicy with a vivid black fruit quality, some firm tannins and good acidity. There’s a core of sweet fruit here with nice depth and density, and a slight prickle on the finish. 92/100
