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Encosta da Quinta

Humus Palheto Orange 2019

Price: $28.95
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Tasting notes

Palheto Orange is technically a blanc de noir in reverse — Touriga Nacional juice macerated on white grape skins, which pulls florals and stone fruit from the Touriga while the Arinto and Fernão Pires skins add texture, grip, and a cidery, dried-apricot character. At Atlantic-cooled Quinta do Paço, the high natural acidity keeps everything lively rather than heavy.

BodyFruitTanninAcidity
Dried ApricotApricotStone FruitHazelnut
  • Style: Skin-contact orange wine; amber-hued; dried apricot, stone fruit, floral; medium body; high acidity; no added sulfites
  • Grapes & Terroir: Touriga Nacional, Arinto, Fernão Pires; organic certified since 2007; red clay and limestone, 150-200m, Atlantic-influenced, Alvorninha, Óbidos zone
  • Winemaking: Native yeast fermentation; cross-maceration on white grape skins (~1 month); aged 10-12 months in used oak and chestnut barrels; unfiltered, unfined, no added SO2
  • Serving: Serve at 55-60°F; light chill brings out acidity and freshness; no decanting needed
  • Pairing: Aged sheep's milk cheese, charcuterie, roast chicken, mushroom pasta, Portuguese cured meats
  • Similar To: For fans of Friulian orange wines or Jura whites who want Atlantic acidity and Portuguese native varieties

Humus Palheto Orange is one of the more unusual wines coming out of Portugal's Lisboa region. It is built around Touriga Nacional, a red grape whose juice is first macerated briefly on its own skins, then transferred to macerate for approximately one month on the skins of Arinto and Fernão Pires — two white varieties native to the region. The result sits between categories: structurally it reads like a skin-contact white, but the Touriga Nacional base gives it a floral lift and grip that a straight orange wine would not have.

After maceration, the wine is aged in used oak and chestnut barrels for around 10 to 12 months, then bottled unfiltered and unfined with no added sulfites. Fermentation is spontaneous with native yeasts. The Atlantic climate at Quinta do Paço in Alvorninha delays harvest into mid-October, meaning grapes come off the vine with natural acidity intact and relatively moderate sugar levels.

The estate, Quinta do Paço, sits in Alvorninha roughly 90 kilometers north of Lisbon, at elevations between 150 and 200 meters. The 9 planted hectares of the 20-hectare property sit on red clay and limestone slopes with south and southwest exposures. The estate has been certified organic since 2007. Winemaker Rodrigo Filipe — a self-taught former civil engineer — works with varieties his father planted starting in 1991 and has added over the years: Castelão, Fernão Pires, Arinto, Touriga Nacional, and Syrah.

This wine is labeled Vinho Regional Lisboa, produced within the Óbidos DOC zone but sold under the broader regional designation.

The wine's grip and acidity make it a natural match for aged sheep's milk cheese such as Queijo da Serra or Manchego. It holds up well alongside charcuterie, roasted chicken with herbs, or dishes with some fat or umami, like mushroom-based pastas. Avoid delicate raw seafood — the tannins from the skin maceration need something with a bit of body to push back against.

Wine details

Dry/Sweet:, Dry
Wine Type:, Orange Wine
Wine Style:, Medium Body
Grapes:, Touriga Nacional, Arinto, Fernão Pires
Farming:, Organic
Vintage:, 2019
Alcohol:, 12.5%
Country:, Portugal
Region:, Lisboa
Appellation:, Vinho Regional Lisboa
Bottle Size:, 750ml
Sugar Level:, Zero Added Sugar

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.


Important Compliance Requirements

FedEx and other carriers we might occasionally use can only deliver wine to customers who are 21 years or older. Someone must be at the address to receive the package, carriers don't just drop a package and leave. They must ensure the person receiving the wine is 21 or older.


Re-shipping a Package

If a package is returned to us after three failed delivery attempts, we can only re-ship the wine upon payment of a re-shipping fee, to be determined based on the shipping address and number of bottles. Shipping wine is extremely expensive. We are sorry about this, but we have no other choice. Please make sure there's always someone at the address you enter as your shipping address.

If you'd like to receive a refund for a package that was returned to us after FedEx made three delivery attempts, we can do that but we must keep a $20 refund fee; FedEx charges us a lot of money for returns, unfortunately, I can't stress this enough.


Re-routing a Package

If you'd like to reroute a package after it's been shipped, we can do so for a $20 re-routing fee. We cannot re-route a package across state borders. For any change of address, please contact us as soon as possible, ideally within 1-2 days from placing the order or we cannot guarantee we'll be able to reroute or change your order's shipping address.


Canceling an Order

If you'd like to cancel an order after it's been shipped, we can do so upon payment of a small cancellation fee – the amount depends on the size of the order. Carriers charge us a lot of money to recall a package en-route.


Heat/Frost damage

We are not responsible for heat- or frost-related issues. We offer ice-packs upon request. Please let us know if you think that there could be heat-related issues. If we don't hear anything from you regarding weather issues before an order is shipped, or if you don't request a hold due to the weather, we are not responsible for heat/frost damage.


Placed an order. What next?

1. You will receive an order confirmation email with your order summary.*

2. As soon as your order ships from the warehouse, usually within 2-3 business days, this applies to all shipping rates, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with your tracking information. 2DAY shipping refers to shipping time; we still need 2-3 business days to prepare an order. We need to pick and pack, QA, add printed collateral, and palletize the orders.

3. Please track your package using the tracking service.

4. The carrier will attempt delivery a maximum of 3 times. After 3 delivery attempts, your package will be sent back to our warehouse.**

*Please ensure your email address is correct; otherwise, you will not receive the order and shipping confirmation emails.

**If delivery is attempted 3 times without success, or if you fail to retrieve your package from the carrier depot by the stated deadline, the shipping fee will not be refunded to the customer.

Returns Policy

If you are not satisfied with your purchase, please contact us at (424) 414-2040 or via e-mail at hello@primalwine.com between 9 am and 5 pm Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Sunday, we would like to understand and try to solve your concerns. We can offer refunds only as store credit.

Producer profile

Encosta da Quinta

Encosta da Quinta is the estate of Rodrigo Filipe, located at Quinta do Paço in the village of Alvorninha, approximately 90 kilometers north of Lisbon. The property was purchased by Rodrigo's grandfather in the 1960s when it was operated as a polyculture farm. Rodrigo's father planted the first vines on the slopes in 1991 — Castelão, Fernão Pires, and Arinto — covering about three hectares. Rodrigo came to the harvest in 1999, a former civil engineer with no formal oenology training, and did not stop. He learned from his father's books and expanded the planted area to nine hectares over time.

The estate now works nine hectares of vines within a 20-hectare property on red clay and limestone slopes with south and southwest exposures. The estate has been certified organic since 2007. No synthetic chemicals are used in the vineyard or cellar. Grapes are harvested by hand. The Atlantic climate delays harvest into mid-October, preserving natural acidity.

Rodrigo Filipe ferments with native yeasts and adds no sulfites. The Palheto range involves a cross-maceration technique: Touriga Nacional juice macerates briefly on its own skins, then continues maceration on the skins of Arinto and Fernão Pires for approximately one month. The wine is then aged in used oak and chestnut barrels for 10 to 12 months and bottled unfiltered and unfined. Wines are released under the Humus label and classified as Vinho Regional Lisboa.

Wine region

Lisboa, Portugal

The Lisboa wine region runs along Portugal's central Atlantic coast, stretching north from the capital. It contains nine DOCs with significantly varied terroir depending on proximity to the ocean. The Óbidos DOC, where Quinta do Paço is located, sits at around 150 to 200 meters above sea level between the Atlantic Ocean and the Serra dos Candeeiros range. A gap in the hills allows cold, wet westerlies from the Atlantic to reach the vineyards year-round, creating high humidity and a cool growing season. This pushes harvest into mid-October and keeps natural acidity high in the grapes. Soils in the area are primarily calcareous clay and limestone.

Because of the cool, humid Atlantic influence, the Óbidos DOC is best known for sparkling wine production rather than still wines — the climate mirrors the logic behind Champagne and Cognac in France. The main white varieties authorized in the region include Arinto, Fernão Pires, Vital, and Rabo de Ovelha; reds include Castelão and Touriga Nacional. The wider Lisboa region was formerly labeled Estremadura and is one of Portugal's most productive wine areas, though quality-focused producers like Encosta da Quinta work at the low-yield, organically farmed end of the spectrum.

Frequently asked question

We will process and ship your order in 2-3 business days, you will receive a shipping confirmation email with tracking as soon as the Carrier scans the shipping label.

Ground shipping time depends on location, here's a breakdown:

West Coast: 1-2 business days
Midwest: 3-4 business days
East Coast: 5 business days

Process time is not shipping time. Shipping time starts from the days successive to the day of shipping, after the order has been processed.

See here our shipping policy.

Signature on delivery is mandatory for wine deliveries. Please make sure someone is at the shipping address to sign for the package.

If applicable, please consider delivering the package to a business address to ensure someone is available to sign for the package.

We also have the option of delivering the package to a Carrier's store for pickup. Please reach out to us to coordinate.

Carrier will try to delivery a package up to three times before returning the package to us.

See here our shipping policy.

If you miss a delivery and a package gets returned to us we have two options:

1) Reship the package right away: due to the very high cost of shipping and returns, we must charge a re-shipping fee to be determined based on package size and shipping destination.

2) Consolidate the returned package with your next order: this option is free of charge and it's the most popular option.

See here our shipping policy.

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