Luis Seabra, “Xisto Ilimitado” Douro Branco Supply

Luis Seabra, “Xisto Ilimitado” Douro Branco

Luis Seabra is a Portuguese wine celebrity and an influential mentor to other producers. Much like Spain’s Raul Pérez, Seabra took the measure of Portugal’s incredible stockpile of ancient grapes and heritage vineyards and reinterpreted them for the modern era, leading a major “cultural shift” in winemaking in his two chosen regions: Douro and Vinho Verde.

Among Seabra’s innovations was simply harvesting white wine grapes earlier, to preserve acidity and avoid elevated alcohol and glycerol levels. “Xisto Ilimitado” is his Portuguese answer to village-level Burgundy; the native grapes Rabigato (60%), Gouveio, Códega, and Viosinho are fermented 90% in used oak and 10% in stainless steel, then aged in the same mix of vessels for one year on lees.

French wine drinkers might go as far as to call this wine “Chablisienne”—it’s taut and bracingly mineral, with a straw-yellow hue and notes of yellow apple, salted lemon, white peach, white pepper, fresh chèvre, white and yellow flowers, and wet stones. Medium-bodied and wonderfully refreshing, it is ready for pairing with grilled octopus or roast chicken.