Characteristics of Humus Balbúrdia
Humus Balbúrdia is a natural, ecological and vegan red wine made with the Syrah, Tinta Barroca and Touriga Nacional varieties by Encosta da Quinta in the Vinho regional de Lisboa denomination, in Lisbon (Portugal).
When Rodrigo Filipe decided to dedicate himself completely to viticulture, he left his job as an engineer and put all his efforts into Encosta da Quinta; the family winery bought by his grandfather in 1960 in Alvorninha, a few kilometres from Lisbon. That is where he set up the Humus project and taught himself what to do. He now makes very Atlantic natural wines using local varieties.
Humus Balbúrdia comes from a single vineyard planted in calcareous clay soils. The vines are cultivated using organic agriculture and organic treatments instead of pesticides, herbicides or any other chemical products. The Atlantic influence is constant and the harvest is manual in small boxes.
In the winery, the Humus Balbúrdia grapes are destemmed and crushed. Fermentation then begins spontaneously in stainless steel tanks with native yeasts at a controlled temperature. Two weeks later the wine is transferred to old oak barrels and they experiment with mixing different vintages. The wine is bottled without being filtered, clarified or adding sulphur.
Named after a Portuguese term that means chaos, Humus Balbúrdia is made by mixing different barrels. This experiment, despite not being part of any trend, has resulted in the lightness and freshness that is so popular with today’s consumer.