When a winemaking cooperative is poorly managed and pays badly and (very) late, its members run into serious problems. Some begin selling their grapes to private clients, who pay better and on time, but others have to take more radical and often risky measures, particularly when they produce large volumes. Such was the case with four members of the Adega Cooperativa da Covilhã, who joined forces to tackle the difficulties inflicted on them by the cooperative. In the countryside, where individualism is the byword, this really made waves and was only possible because the entrepreneurs involved were businessmen well-accustomed to overcoming obstacles. António Gouveia, a building contractor from the Almada region, was one of the leading figures behind the initiative, along with José Manuel Canhoto, who also had links to construction, Francisco Cabral, a clothing industrialist, and Isabel Paiva, an economist with ties to the ceramics industry. The fifth partner, Luís Costa, came on board because he was an agricultural engineer at the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD), meaning he had the technical background to oversee the project. Feeling dejected after a general meeting of the Adega Cooperativa da Covilhã, they decided to work together and steer their businesses in a new direction. The business model was based exclusively on producing and marketing wines made using the partners' own grapes. Their vineyards span some 60 hectares and extend across two rival neighbouring parishes, so the partners required considerable diplomacy when naming the company. The two (2) parishes, Caria and Belmonte, and five (5) partners gave the company its name: 2.5 Vinhos de Belmonte, Lda., which only incorporates the name of one of the parishes, since the company's head office and winery were built in the other. This solution succeeded in placating all parties. In 2009, work began to construct a modern winery under the direction of prestigious oenologist Anselmo Mendes. Unable to devote the necessary time to the project, he brought in the young oenologist Patrícia Santos to help him monitor the wines.

The first vintage arrived in 2009 and instantly showed that the region now had another leading producer-bottler within its ranks. Awards began to roll in, both at home and abroad, and the 2.5 brand soon entered the lexicon of an army of Beira Interior wine lovers. However, the five partners quickly realised that the hardest part of the business was selling the wine with added value, especially when starting from scratch under a little-known designation of origin. This led them to focus on Beira Interior PDO boxed wine, which accounts for around 80% of total production. The rest, of even better quality and made using some of the region's historic grape varieties, is bottled and sold almost entirely on the domestic market.

Manuela Carmona is an ophthalmologist who leads a busy life in Lisbon, but she has never forgotten her Beira roots, returning to Sarnadas de Ródão in the far south of the Castelo Branco district whenever she can. In 2014, she decided to embark on a daring wine project to feed her fascination with wine history and culture, and to provide an escape from her intense professional life. With characteristic passion and fortitude, she set to work, allowing herself to be guided by her core principles of originality, excellence, innovation, taste and proficiency.

The challenge was a huge one. It takes courage to plant 12 hectares of vines in an area with no wine-growing tradition, a harsh climate with extreme temperatures and rough, arid, poor-quality soil, more suited to forests than vines. The design of the winery itself was entrusted to a prestigious architectural studio, whose remit was to conceive a symbolic and impressive building, bearing in mind that it was to be situated at the highest point on the estate, directly opposite the A23 motorway and visible to everyone passing by. Indeed, it was this fact that gave rise to the name Adega 23.

To design the style of the wines, she enlisted Rui Reguinga, an experienced oenologist who has worked in various regions. The grapes chosen include traditional Beira Interior varieties, as well as some fashionable types, with special mention going to two French varieties from the Rhône Valley – Syrah and Viognier –, which Manuela Carmona made a point of selecting for historical reasons. In the 12th century, King Sancho I needed to repopulate the region he had recently conquered from the Moors so he sought assistance from his grandparents, who ruled over lands in the Rhône, Toulouse and Provence. The knights and their retinues who were subsequently enlisted saw striking similarities with their homeland in the steep banks of the Tagus, renaming the small existing settlement Vila Velha do Ródão.

The first vintage arrived in the summer of 2017, with the first white and rosé wines hitting the market in June 2018 and the red a few months later. The bottles are impeccably presented and the wines themselves are a testament to the project's guiding principles: authenticity, identity, elegance, and ultimately excellence. It is an audacious venture, in which wine goes hand in hand with history and culture, truly honouring both the producer and Beira Interior itself.

This cooperative's original winery, with its beautiful architectural design, exemplifies the second phase of the cooperative movement in the Beira Interior region. It first processed grapes in 1960 and quickly expanded in membership and vinification volume. During the 1980s and 1990s, member grape deliveries reached their height, exceeding 15 million kilograms and making Adega Cooperativa de Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo one of the country's leading cooperatives and the second largest in Beira Interior.

Until 2002, it was best known for its white wines, which accounted for between 60% and 65% of total output. In recent years, driven by market trends, red wines now represent around half of production.

In 2000, the cooperative underwent a major technological overhaul, acquiring second-generation autovinifiers and a refrigeration system, which greatly contributed to improved wine quality. Today, red wines are vinified in stainless steel vats with temperature control.

Since the 2016 harvest, the cooperative has been receiving organically grown grapes separately, thanks to the initiative of a number of members, allied with the region’s exceptional conditions for this type of production. The resulting wines are marketed as organic and fetch higher prices, with expectations for continued growth.

As with most large-producing cooperatives, the majority of its wine is sold in bulk. Annual quantity and pricing fluctuate significantly depending on harvest yields, unlike bottled or bag-in-box wine sales, which tend to show only minor fluctuations. The cooperative is notable for its appreciable volume of bottled wine sales, reaching 700,000 bottles in 2020, while bag-in-box volumes remain modest, with a resulting increase in the overall added value of its sales.

Its extensive portfolio spans white, red and rosé wines, along with monovarietals, sparkling wines and organic labels.
In recent years, the management has invested in wine tourism through partnerships with Douro Azul – a company specialising in river cruises – and a Spanish travel agency, which has increasingly drawn visitors from across the border to the region.

The Adega Cooperativa do Fundão wine cooperative is one of the pioneers in the Beira Interior region, having begun operations in 1949 with an intake of around 100 tonnes of grapes. Eleven years later, it was receiving over 1,500 tonnes, and by the early 1990s the figure had reached 4,500 tonnes, evidence of the enthusiastic support the cooperative model garnered from the majority of winegrowers within its sphere of influence. Since then, it has experienced a decline in membership and now has about a fifth of the number it had two decades ago.

Most of its members favour red grape varieties, opting for low-yield, high-quality harvests that enable the cooperative to produce red wines of excellent quality with outstanding value for money.

Though small, the cooperative has successfully kept pace with technological developments and is equipped with the resources needed to make the most of its members’ grapes.

Since the 1980s, it has marketed its wines in both demijohn and bottle with considerable success, particularly on the domestic market. In the 2000s, it began exporting, which at one point accounted for 30% of production. However, the decline in membership has led to a generalised decrease in exports.

The cooperative's wine brands were recently restructured with the creation of an umbrella brand, ‘Adega do Fundão’, which now encompasses the former brands ‘Alpedrinha,’ ‘Cova da Beira’ and ‘Alcambar’. At present, all red, white and rosé wines are sold in bottles or bag-in-box format, with no bulk wine sales.

The Adega Cooperativa de Pinhel wine cooperative is the cornerstone of the cooperative wine sector in the Beira Interior region and one of the largest in the country. As such, it is known as the wholesale ‘supermarket,’ from which many of the most prestigious companies source their wines. Since its founding in 1947, it has processed grapes from local growers, who gradually came to appreciate the benefits of outsourcing vinification. By 1980, with over a thousand members, the winery was processing around ten million kilograms of grapes. At the turn of the millennium, it had surpassed two thousand members, delivering around fifteen million kilograms annually.

As with other regional cooperatives, it has seen a reduction in membership, falling to roughly half over the past twenty years. However, grape intake has not followed this trend: despite a notable drop between 2000 and 2010, volumes have since risen, which suggests the remaining members have increased their vineyard area and production. In fact, the highest volume of grapes ever delivered to the cooperative was recorded in 2021, bucking the trend seen elsewhere.

The cooperative’s growth has necessitated successive expansions, enabling it to keep pace with technological advances and to make the most of the quality grapes it receives. In bumper harvest years, it certainly faces operational challenges due to the sheer quantity received, yet it continues to produce excellent wines. Currently the main focus is on red wines, whether blended or varietal, some whites, and a small volume of partially fermented grape must, with rosé production now minimal. Given its vast output, around 75% of the wine produced is sold in bulk – as non-appellation wine, PGI Terras da Beira, or PDO Beira Interior. PGI Terras da Beira wines appear mainly under the Pinhel label, as Encostas do Côa. The latter, labelled ‘Reserva’, is sold as PDO wine, though in limited volumes. PDO Beira Interior wines are primarily sold under the brand D. Manuel I, which is gaining well-earned recognition, with smaller volumes released as Varanda do Castelo. This cooperative has a new brand “Solares” as an honour to Pinhel town, as it has many solar houses in the historic centre. The cooperative also produces traditional-method sparkling wine and has recently begun producing frizzante wine.

Artur Ribeiro da Silva and Maria Luiza Lima, major names in Portuguese wine, purchased the Quinta do Cardo estate in 1983. Close to the historic village of Castelo Rodrigo, it comprised some 200 hectares, with around 12 hectares of traditional vineyards growing typical Beira Interior grape varieties. This was the first step towards the estate becoming a standard-bearer for Beira Interior wines and a benchmark for Portuguese wines in general. In 1984, they began renovating the facilities and built a new winery incorporating the most advanced technologies of the time, including gas-injection remontage for red wine, continuous cold stabilisation, pneumatic pressing, flash pasteurisation and blanketing. Two years later, new planting began and was not completed until 2001. This resulted in 24 hectares of Síria and Arinto and 22 hectares of Mourisco, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Nacional and Touriga Francesa, prioritising a balance between the region's historic grape varieties and those most famous in the Douro. The entire production employed an integrated pest management system – a novelty at the time – and was equipped with drip irrigation, another first for the area. The old vineyard, considered one of the estate's winemaking treasure troves, was pruned close and restored as best as possible.

The first white Quinta do Cardo was bottled in 1986 and the first red in 1988. The brand's fame soared and it quickly became one of the great Portuguese wines, lending a great deal of prestige to Beira Interior, then largely unknown. It should be noted that Luísa Lima and Ribeiro da Silva have always prized indigenous grape varieties, making Síria famous among the whites, and Mourisco (Marufo) and Rufete among the reds. The estate's renown made it an attractive proposition and, in 1999, Ribeiro da Silva and Luísa Lima sold it to Miguel Azevedo, the director of Companhia das Quintas. It was this company that finished planting the new vineyards and expanded the winery with a new pavilion as a means of increasing production. The new owners had high hopes, but unfortunately these resulted in little. Despite their excellent quality, the wines were sold at low prices, and marketing difficulties forced austerity measures on the estate's management. Shortly afterwards, the Group's financial difficulties aggravated the situation even further and led to a capital increase in 2007, provided by Paes do Amaral, who took over. Once again, expectations were met with disappointment. In 2009, the vineyards transitioned to the Sativa-certified organic production system. This was an important step towards protecting biodiversity and the agricultural ecosystem, but yields fell, impacting the estate's profitability in turn. In 2014, Quinta do Cardo went fully organic, its wines considered niche for not fitting with the easy, commercial style adopted by the Companhia das Quintas Group for its exports. However, the results continued to be disheartening, with clear repercussions on the estate's management, ultimately signalling the end of this phase of its life.

At the end of 2021, the owners of Quinta da Boa Esperança, in the Lisbon region, together with other investors, acquired Quinta do Cardo with the aim of expanding the group's wine portfolio and restoring the estate's status as the epitome of Beira Interior, transforming it into an international benchmark. In 2022, work began on restoring the vineyards and adding a further 10 hectares of the Síria variety, while retaining the certified organic component. Quinta do Cardo's new management is determined to make the venture economically, environmentally, socially and culturally sustainable in all its aspects, honouring the unique methods used to produce high-altitude wine in an unparalleled region, and emphasising the geographical and cultural backdrop of Castelo Rodrigo and the Douro International Natural Park.

José and Daniel Saraiva are two very special brothers who, happily, get along like a house on fire and run numerous businesses together in blissful harmony. Their primary ventures involve agricultural product sales and fuel distribution, but they never shy away from new opportunities and adventures. Hence their foray into viniculture, and later wine production. When they inherited the family land, they decided to convert some of the vineyards and restore the rest. For a few years, they sold the grapes to the Adega Cooperativa de Pinhel, but one day while talking with friends in Aveiro, José came to the realisation that he wanted to make wine. And that was that. Upon his arrival in Pinhel, he purchased two vats and began putting his words into action. It was far from easy at first, but little by little, with José and Daniel's entrepreneurial flair, the project took shape and began to grow. They hired an oenologist – the renowned José Brandão –, built a winery with all the technical requirements and began to professionalise the activity and the business. In 2007, the first vintage of Aforista wine appeared and the results soon started to show. Competition medals became customary, demand for the wines grew and the Aforista brand emerged from the shadows. Sales, almost always the thorniest phase of any project, have not been a problem, as the agricultural product warehouse distributes a large portion of production. Later, they discovered the ‘nostalgia market’ in France and Switzerland, the Aforista and Militis wines serving to satisfy the longings of the many Beira natives who work there.

The company also seeks out an active role in the Pinhel community, for which the wine sector is extremely important. Of particular note is the labelling project organised in schools, which fosters children's creativity and has already resulted in prizes for 10 students.

José and Daniel remain enthusiastic about the project and are already turning their attentions to growth, not only in terms of vineyards and litres of wine produced, but also new customers and markets. Their secret can be summed up in a few short words: passion, hard work, business sense and high-quality wines. It almost sounds easy.

André Galante works at Deloitte in Lisbon and inherited his love of winemaking from his grandfather António Bernardo, who told him life stories and brought him into contact with the vineyards in the Cerejo area, near Vila Franca das Naves, where he had been making wine for his own consumption for decades. Later, when he got together with his cousin Johnny Santos, he discovered wines from other places, which served to further pique his enthusiasm. His cousin, a trained oenologist, told him that the family vineyards could produce equally impressive wines, and this proved to be the catalyst for the project. His first winemaking experience came in 2013, using the granite lagares at his father's house. The results were so astonishing that the project soon gained momentum, the winemaking and bottling activity being certified by the Beira Interior regional wine-growing commission (CVR). His father still sells most of the grapes to the Adega Cooperativa Beira Serra, but around 20% of the best produce is earmarked for André's venture. The first Pândego vintage arrived in 2015, but was only launched in 2018, earning the highest praise from friends and customers alike. In the meantime, André took the winemaking and wine bottling courses run by the Estação Vitivinícola da Beira Litoral winemaking research station, in Anadia, broadening his knowledge and gaining more critical awareness.

Although very small and impacted by the pandemic, the project is progressing, with much of the production being sold and even exported. These small successes have proved a powerful incentive, with André's brothers and father becoming inspired to plant new vineyards by converting overly labour-intensive orchards. Hopefully the project will prove a success, since its main mission is to prevent the disappearance of agriculture in Cerejo, provide work for local people and get young people interested in viticulture.

Celso Madeira is a civil engineer who enjoyed a bustling professional life in large Portuguese companies, on both the technical and managerial sides. Upon his retirement, he returned to his beloved Douro Superior, brimming with experience and dreaming of recovering and reconnecting with his neglected ancestral land, which had been in the family since the 17th century. The challenge he set himself was an ambitious one, the aim being to begin producing and marketing top-quality agricultural products in accordance with the strictest agri-environmental requirements.

He prioritised organic olive oil and wine production in the Douro Superior, which quickly won the highest praise from critics and consumers. The commercial project sought to bring the best product to the market and sell it at a lower price than the competition's second-best. Although audacious, this goal was achieved, with the venture growing rapidly and generating great publicity for CARM's olive oils and wines. Today, in the Douro, there are 130 hectares of vineyards, around 200 hectares of olive groves, 110 hectares of almond groves and 50 hectares of cork oaks, as well as scrubland and pastures.

The Beira Interior project began in mid-2008, when the Douro project was already well-established, and was fuelled by three important factors: 1) the possibility offered by European legislation to make VQPRD Beira Interior wine in CARM's winery in the Douro, taking into account the principle of ‘proximity,’ which ensured the technological equipment was profitable, given that the grapes from the two regions ripened at different times; 2) Beira Interior's huge potential for producing great wines, in the opinion of Alberto Vilhena, one of Portugal's great oenologists, who works in the Dão and 3) Celso Madeira's strong connection to Beira and his ancestors.

The first tests, conducted using purchased grapes, confirmed all the initial expectations and Celso Madeira immediately decided to start his own production. Planting began at Quinta da Urze, a property that straddles the border between the Douro and Beira Interior. This was followed by a further 10 hectares in Vermiosa, in a stunning setting next to the Almofala Dam reservoir. Most of the Beira vineyards are situated in the Iberian Plateau, at around 700 metres above sea level, and all are cultivated sustainably without chemicals, in soils revitalised exclusively with organic matter, full respecting biodiversity and the environment. This produces the ideal raw material for making wines with character and a sense of place. The style of the wines also takes into account the demands of the international market, where elegance, balance and freshness are the guiding principles. Marketed under the Marquês d'Almeida and Almendra brands, they quickly achieved a distinguished reputation and won the most prestigious awards. In order to consolidate the Beira project, the plan is to plant a further 10 hectares of vines, 25 hectares of olive groves and 25 hectares of almond groves over the next five years, all with drip irrigation. On the commercial side, meanwhile, new markets are being prospected both at home and abroad.

In addition to its wines, CARM has a global reputation for its olive oils, which have won the Mario Solinas Award – considered the ‘Nobel Prize for Olive Oil’ – 14 times. Following the example set by the wines, olive oils from Beira Interior are also expected soon. There is also a range of gourmet products based on olive oil (olive pastes, artichoke and dried tomato creams, pesto, peppers stuffed with tuna and cheese, olives and artichoke hearts) and vinegars, one of which is made with the Touriga Nacional grape variety and aged for over fifteen years in oak casks. If there was any doubt, CARM is clear proof that Portugal’s interior has a bright future and should be highly recommended.

Mr João Saraiva Gonçalves, who everyone knows as João Pombo, dedicates his heart and soul to agriculture. His vineyards are in the parish of Pala, known as the ‘Vineyard Capital’ and famous for its winemaking tradition and the quality of its wines. In 2008, the family's agricultural business took a big step forward when they decided to create Casa Agrícola Cova da Raposa, Lda. with a view to turning around half of their production into wine. They duly invested in a modern winery with all the technical specifications. The desire to create their own wine brand, Pombo Bravo, stemmed from the quality of the grapes, whose vines are grown organically – as certified by the company Sativa – and which João Pombo nurtures with the utmost care. Cultivation and harvesting follow a precise calendar, in parallel with most of Pala's locals, according to traditions that go back to medieval times. The vineyards look like gardens and the yields are generous and immaculately healthy even without drip irrigation, since the climate is unfavourable for pests and diseases.

The grape harvest, which almost always takes place in October, is a festive occasion that gets the whole family enthused. The winemaking and bottling is overseen by Patrícia Santos, based on a minimalist oenology that emphasises the excellence of the grapes. The Síria variety, the most widely planted in the region, is the queen of the whites and produces a varietal wine that has already made a name for itself; the Touriga Nacional variety, king of the reds, produces fragrant and elegant wines, the result of slow ripening at around 700 m above sea level. Almost all the wines are ‘virgin,’ as Patrícia Santos points out, with no prolonged fermentation on skins, very few additives and minimal contact with wood. Hopefully, in the near future, there will also be wines made from Beira Interior's historic red grape varieties.

As its owners explain, Casa Agrícola Cova da Raposa and Pombo Bravo wines offer a fascinating glimpse into rural life, in communion with nature and a return to the freshness and simplicity of the Beira plateau's flavours.

While Paulo Romão was studying Textile Engineering at the University of Leeds, fate dealt him a cruel blow. His brother passed away, forcing him to return home at the age of 19 and take over the family textile business, which employed some 130 workers. A textile engineer may have been lost, but ultimately a fully fledged entrepreneur was gained. It was a stern test that he passed with flying colours, thanks to his leadership qualities, interpersonal skills, dynamism and ‘addiction’ to work. The experience gained has proved crucial to the success of all the projects he continues to engage in, whose motto has always been ‘doing things right.’ Wine is a long-standing passion, as witnessed by the more than 1,000 bottles of Dão and Bairrada wine he already possessed at the age of 26. Before becoming a winemaker, he dedicated himself to tourism projects – another of his passions – and in 2000, together with his wife Cármen, he dazzled everyone by opening the Casas do Côro development in Marialva, following an innovative village tourism concept

In 2010, Dirk Niepoort, a frequent visitor to Casas do Côro, challenged Paulo Romão to experiment with winemaking in Marialva. And that was that. The grapes, from very old vines, were purchased from neighbours and produced some exciting wines, despite the lack of a winery. He then took the grapes to the factory in Guarda, where experiments continued and enthusiasm grew. Before building his own, he used his friend Rui Madeira's winery in Vermiosa for four years. Meanwhile, he was planting vineyards around the historic village of Marialva, favouring white grape varieties from the area bordering the Douro and Beira Interior. In 2018, he hired Niepoort's protégé Carlos Raposo as oenologist and began to steady the ship. By employing a minimalist oenology from grape to bottle, austere, long-lived wines that respect the terroir of Marialva began to emerge. The first bottles launched on the market epitomise Paulo Romão, with impeccable presentation and quality wines that leave a real impression. With his creativity and restlessness, he will surely continue to astonish all by honouring the winemaking tradition of Marialva, famed for its wines since Roman times.

José Madeira Afonso was born in Coimbra, but from an early age he fell in love with Souro Pires, near Pinhel, where he spent long spells at his maternal grandmother's house. His fascination with country life and the grape harvest led him to enrol at the Escola de Regentes Agrícolas de Coimbra, completing his studies at the age of 18. He then went on to study medicine – his other passion – and finished his degree in 1974. For professional reasons, he lived in Bergen, Norway, for three years, where he learned all about the charms of wine, thanks to his contact with great connoisseurs who tasted and studied all the world's best. Tours and holidays in Bordeaux, Burgundy, Alsace, Moselle and Tuscany therefore became very natural, frequent and irresistible. In the early 1990s, he realised his dream of taking over the family's old vineyards, planting new vines of the international varieties that had fascinated him most – Riesling and Chardonnay – and building a modern winery to produce his own wine. The results were not long in coming. The whites from the two international varieties amaze his German and French friends, while the white, red and sparkling wines he makes with the region's historic varieties serve to enhance Beira Interior's prestige. Nowadays, he rarely goes to Coimbra, whiling away his time tending to his vines and pursuing his dream of making ‘great wine.’

This cooperative winery is quite unique, being geographically located in the Douro region while operating within the facilities of the Adega Cooperativa da Mêda. It was established as a solution to support the numerous winegrowers in the northern area of Beira Interior, who were situated too far from regional cooperatives to feasibly deliver their grapes there.

With its distinctive roof of adjoining barrel vaults, this wine cooperative has managed to undergo expansions without altering its original design, remaining a fine example of mid-20th-century architecture. Located in Vila Franca das Naves, next to the Beira Alta railway line, it was built to receive the bulk of the grapes produced by growers in the municipality of Trancoso and began operations in 1960. It reached peak production between 1990 and 2000, processing over nine million kilos of grapes, which made it the third-largest cooperative in the Beira Interior region. Like most others, its production fell sharply in the early 2000s and currently stands at between three and four million kilos.

Equipped with the necessary technology to enhance the value of its members’ grapes, the cooperative has undergone several upgrades over the years. Bottled wine only began gaining relevance around 2010 and has shown consistent growth in recent years. Benefiting from a privileged climate, the wines – both white and red – are generally of excellent quality and enjoy a strong reputation. As a result, they are regularly awarded prizes in both national and international competitions.

Wines are marketed under the labels Beira Serra (the most recognised), Portas d’El Rei, and Terras de Bandarra. The premium wines, all designated PDO Beira Interior, are bottled under the brands Bodas Reais, Boa Pergunta and Óptima Pergunta. In addition to white, red and rosé wines, the cooperative also produces quality sparkling and frizzante wines using the traditional method.

In 1987, thanks to the dynamism, compassion and solidarity of Jaime Ramos and a few others from Miranda do Corvo, a Professional Development and Training Association was set up in Miranda do Corvo and later converted into a Foundation. It is a unique non-profit charity with public utility status, which provides daily support to around 7500 users and helps train people with physical and/or mental disabilities, while also supporting the chronically ill, children, young people, pregnant women and mothers, victims of abuse, refugees, the homeless and the elderly. It also invests in people, by creating and developing social responses geared towards bringing different generations together, integrating ethnic minorities and promoting sustainable local development.

To reduce its dependence on state support, the Foundation has invested in tourism and agriculture as priority economic activities. It thereby contributes to the regional development in the territories where it operates, as well as job creation and inclusion for disadvantaged people. As a result, more than 325 hectares of property were acquired in the municipality of Fundão, where there are already 12 hectares of vineyards and a further 26 hectares being planted. Until a winery is built in Alpedrinha, the Foundation is using its one in Miranda do Corvo to make wine from the grapes produced and purchased in Terras de Sicó. For this reason, the Beira Interior wines are still considered Terras da Beira regional wines. Gonçalo Costa, the well-known oenologist from Terras de Sicó, is the mentor and head of wine production in Beira Interior, where he prioritises regional grape varieties and the region's traditional wine styles. Everything produced is sold in the Foundation's restaurants and tourist resorts, but products are expected across all retail channels soon. The wines are fantastic and highly recommended, whilst every time you open a bottle you are also contributing to an exemplary charitable cause.

For several generations, the Salavessa family produced wine for their own consumption at the Horta de Gonçalpares in Cebolais de Cima. In 2002, the latest generations, João Salavessa, the father and a veterinarian by training, and João Salavessa, the son and an agronomist with a PhD in Food Technology, decided to honour the family's winemaking tradition by making a flagship wine with a unique identity that could put Horta de Gonçalpares and the Salavessa family on the Portuguese wine map. Their commitment was based on the conviction that the only way forward was through quality, even if this meant adhering to the principle of ‘small is beautiful.’ They therefore began by selecting grape varieties capable of producing their imagined wine style and planting a vineyard in keeping with the tenets of organic viticulture, fully respecting nature and biodiversity. The winery, though small, was fitted with the best equipment and the wines are fermented in wooden vats and aged in French oak barrels. After bottling, the wine then rests in the silence of the cellar for several years before being released onto the market.

The first vintage was launched in 2006 to immediate and resounding praise. In 2010, it went international, with exports to Berlin and Vienna in Austria. Awards in national and international competitions followed, in recognition of all the work put in by father and son alike. The RAYA brand has become a benchmark and the dream of producing an exceptional wine that celebrates the uniqueness of Beira Interior has become a reality. In summary, it is a boutique wine well worth discovering.

The life of Carlota and Francisco de Pina Ferraz was the stuff of romance. She was born in 1884, young, beautiful and the daughter of a barber from Penamacor. He was born in 1850, the descendant of an illustrious and noble lineage from Beira, from whom he inherited titles and an immense estate, with lands in Penamacor, Idanha-a-Nova, Covilhã, Fundão, Castelo Branco, Sabugal, Guarda, Carregal do Sal and Oliveira do Hospital. There was so much property that people would say: ‘He doesn’t even know what he owns.’ They married late, when she was 36 and he 70. They had no offspring of their own, but succeeded in building a project that ensured many of the underprivileged children in the area were supported, providing them with the necessary means to succeed in life.

Francisco de Pina could have done like most of his peers in the region: rented out his properties, devoted himself exclusively to politics and moved to Lisbon. Instead, he decided to take up farming, run the properties himself and personally oversee the agricultural labour, especially from Devesa, the estate where the family home was also situated. Viticulture and viniculture were particularly dear to him and his wines were famous in Portugal and further afield in Europe, where they won a number of awards.

Francisco died ten years into the marriage and entrusted Carlota with realising his dream of creating a project to help the disadvantaged. It would become Carlota's main goal for 41 years, although she also continued to manage the properties. In 1952, she created the Instituto Social Cristão Pina Ferraz, which embodied the couple's ideals. Over the course of 70 years, the institution has managed to keep up with the times, provide the right answers at every turn and reinvent itself whenever necessary. In 1986, the Institute was registered as a Charitable Foundation. More recently, alongside its social activities, the Pina Ferraz Foundation has been stepping up its business activities, especially in the primary sector. Forestry operations have been developed, with an emphasis on eucalyptus, pine and especially cork oak, with more than 270,000 of the latter planted. Olive grove planting and olive oil production have also resumed, while indigenous breeds have been recovered. But one of the jewels in the crown is the revival of wine production and the Rufete grape variety, in honour of Francisco de Pina.

The 10 hectares of expertly planted vineyards boast Touriga Nacional and Alfrocheiro, as well as Rufete. The winery is nearing completion and the prestigious oenologist Francisco Antunes, assisted in viticulture by the engineer António Selas, will surely extract all the potential from the grapes produced. The first bottles have already hit the market and praise for the new Rufete has not been long in coming. This is just as well, because every time a bottle is opened, the underprivileged children of Penamacor benefit.

Manuel Santos Valentim is a well-known businessman from Pinhel who works in catering and events. His Quinta da Cheínha estate and ‘O Petisco’ restaurant, with their large and imposing facilities, are well known throughout the region. As a businessman, he realised that he could combine his professional life with the love of winemaking inherited from his father. Thus, he decided to go into wine production and create his own brand. He is still a member of the Adega Cooperativa de Pinhel, which buys some of his output, but he has also created a new company to pursue his goals and make best possible use of the synergies between his businesses. Needless to say, all the wine produced is served at the ‘O Petisco’ restaurant and at the countless weddings and dinners he organises at Quinta da Cheínha. As a result, the thorniest and riskiest aspect of the business is assured, creating a virtual monopoly, with the corresponding added value.

Manuel Santos Valentim says he intends to increase his wine production, broaden his customer network and put his brands on the market, although he will be hard-pressed to find a business as profitable as selling his own wine in his own restaurant and at the various events he organises.

This family project began half a century ago when José Rodrigues, affectionately known as Ti Zé, decided to plant vineyards, make wine and create the Monte Barbo brand in an area with no wine-growing traditions in the far south of Beira Interior. Ti Zé's love of the land and passion for wine extended to his family, with his son Eduardo and grandchildren João and Joana continuing and expanding the work begun by their grandfather. The family also produces olives and lemons for sale, as well as other agricultural products for self-consumption and to supply a restaurant, where the only wines on the menu are Monte Barbo.

In 2012, with the support of their grandfather and father, the grandchildren set up a company to professionalise, modernise and expand the wine business. They planted new vines, selected the most fashionable grape varieties and increased the vineyard area. Oenologist Francisco Antunes, who was already providing technical advice to the grandfather, oversaw the construction of the new winery, which was equipped with all the technology required for modern-day winemaking, and also designed the new wine styles. Given his many commitments, João Rodrigues relies on his father's invaluable help to supervise the farming and winery work, while Joana Rodrigues assists her brother in managing the company during her spare time.

Little by little, the efforts of the third generation are beginning to bear fruit. The bottled wines are beginning to establish themselves on the market, with their numerous competition medals testifying to their quality. They also sell boxed wine and, in good vintage years, make bulk exports. Monte Barbo wine is therefore fulfilling its destiny, making a beautiful family venture from Portugal's inland regions famous both at home and abroad.

One of the historic estates in the Castelo Rodrigo region is Quinta da Biaia, which in the 17th century was owned by the governor Henrique Jacques de Magalhães and owes its name to Dona Beatriz de Sousa Lopes, popularly known as Biaia. The current owners, Carlos Flor, a major businessman in the region, and Ricardo Lopes Ferro, a university professor in Lisbon, have long harboured the dream of producing organic wines. In 2014, they asked Luís Leocádio, a well-known oenologist from Beira Interior, to come on board and decided to turn ideas into action by creating the company Domínios do Interior – Produtos da Beira Douro, Lda. The aim was to manage Quinta da Biaia's vineyards, make wine from its grapes and market both the wines and the other organic agricultural products produced, in particular almonds. They invested very cautiously, outsourcing the vinification, ageing and bottling processes. Horácio Nunes, a well-known and respected figure, was chosen as a trusted collaborator and the bedrock of the project, assuming the role of agricultural and winery manager.

The first wines soon demonstrated that the project was based on solid foundations, with a focus on quality. The style is a compromise between international modernity and the rusticity of Beira, where the region's historic grape varieties play an important role. A few awards in prestigious competitions catapulted the Quinta da Biaia brand alongside the great Portuguese organic wines and sales suddenly soared, especially in northern Europe, even during the COVID-19 pandemic. The three partners were thrilled with the results and decided to plant new vines, while renting 37 hectares of mature and old vines. The foundations have therefore been laid for a major organic wine project in the region, which boasts the best conditions in the country for this type of production.

Quinta da Caldeirinha has been owned by the Roda family for four generations. Aida and Jorge Roda are the current proprietors and spend much more time in Almofala than in Lisbon. For years, the grapes produced were sold to the Adega Cooperativa de Figueira de Castelo Rodrigo. As a result of the incentives to uproot vineyards in the 1980s, four hectares were grubbed up, leaving just one old vineyard bearing the region's traditional grape varieties. When she inherited the estate, Aida Roda faced the dilemma of whether to sell or restore it. Ultimately, her love of the place made continuing the legacy an easy decision and she opted to become a producer-bottler, rescinding her membership of the cooperative in the process. She converted the old vineyard to produce organic grapes and planted another four hectares with the most fashionable varieties, also organic. In 2001, she made her first wine, embarking on a thrilling journey into the organic wine business. It was a pioneering project in Beira Interior, in perfect harmony with the ecosystem of the Douro International Natural Park, where the estate is situated, and following the Roda family's well-known principles of respect for nature and biodiversity. The fact that the vineyards are at an altitude of around 700 m made the task easier, as the colder climate is not conducive to vine pests and diseases.

Twenty years on from the start of the project, Quinta da Caldeirinha's wines are respected throughout Portugal and have begun to conquer international markets, thanks to their incredible elegance, typical of wines from the Iberian Plateau. Aida and Jorge Roda have created a sustainable business that honours Beira Interior wines and have shown that Portugal's interior offers great opportunities and has a bright future. Highly recommended!

Dona Carolina emigrated to Brazil in the 19th century in search of her fortune. Whilst crossing the Atlantic, she had the misfortune of seeing her husband succumb to illness and wanted to return immediately. However, when she arrived in Brazil, she decided to stay and realise their dream, demonstrating an indomitable will to succeed. In the state of Paraná, near the town of Marialva, she dedicated herself to agriculture, pioneering vineyard planting and wine production. Many years later, now wealthy, she returned to her native Beira Interior. After buying an estate in Marialva, she decided to pursue farming and wine production once more. She was succeeded by Dona Albertina and, later, Dona Maria do Céu, who continued to manage the estate and justify its name, which literally means ‘Ladies’ Estate’. Until recently, the wine was sold in bulk, but the fifth generation, imbued with the fortitude inherited from Dona Carolina, decided to roll up their sleeves and go a step further, bottling Quinta das Senhoras wine and taking it to the world. With unconditional, loving support from their father – Counsellor Judge Hélder Roque – Rafael, Cláudio and Sara created Quinta das Senhoras, Lda. in 2013 with a view to making their new dream a reality. Their prudence led them to prioritise the vineyards and the quality of the grapes, which would be vinified using traditional presses and without reckless investments. They invited oenologist Carlos Silva, from the Dão, to design the wines and oversee the oenology side of things.

The 2011 vintage was the first to be released onto the market and it instantly showed that the project was based on solid foundations. The wines, made essentially with grape varieties from the nearby Douro, reveal a minimalist style, whose aim is to emphasise a sense of place and the character of the grape varieties. For this reason, they are ‘virgin’ wines, which do not come into contact with oak. It is well worth tasting them on the estate where they are made, if possible, as archaeological remains abound, with huge Roman weight presses and the patina of medieval Marialva, one of Portugal's most important historical sites. A good Beira Interior wine tastes better when is is enjoyed while experiencing Portugal's history first hand.

The owner of Quinta dos Currais, José Diogo Tomás, is a surgeon in Lisbon, but has a strong attachment to his homeland. At the turn of the millennium, encouraged by a friend in the wine business in the Tondela region, he decided to produce and bottle his own wine. He began by planting 30 hectares of vineyards and, as soon as they were producing grapes, he built a winery with all the required technology, hired oenologist Vítor Monteiro, from Tondela, and began to turn his dream into reality. Shortly afterwards, he was forced to replace the oenologist with another from the Dão – the renowned Carlos Silva – who in 2002 oversaw the first vintage to go to market. Since then, Quinta dos Currais has become a well-known and respected brand in the market, prioritising the preservation of historic grape varieties and the identity of Beira Interior wines. One of the secrets of this success is the special attention paid to the marketing of the wines, thanks to an admirable commercial effort that secures annual sales of around 100,000 bottles.

In recent years, José Diogo Tomás's three children have become increasingly involved in the project, with his daughters Ana, a lawyer, and Catarina, a veterinarian, who also live in Lisbon, now taking centre stage. Given their distance from the estate, Manuel Rodrigues continues to be a crucial and dedicated overseer of the project, ensuring the day-to-day running of a 130-hectare estate with its 30 hectares of vineyards, as well as a winery with considerable turnover.

Álvaro Ferraz has been involved in viticulture and wine production for many years, continuing a century-old family tradition. In an act of altruism, he decided to give his children their inheritance while he was still alive. Américo Ferraz, who was the most impulsive, was given the farmland, while his more reserved brother received the houses. This proved to be the first step towards a new winemaking venture. Américo drew on the enthusiasm of his wife, Lúcia, and on his lifelong passion for wine. The couple are both successful dentists in Aveiro, but their distance from the vineyards in Mêda has not deterred them from realising their dreams.

In 2017, they decided to take a professional approach to wine production and created Lúcia & Américo Ferraz, Lda. It was a bold but calculated decision, as they trusted the daily, attentive presence of Américo's father Álvaro and the foreman Carlos Dias, who watched over the vineyards and wines for them. Álvaro Ferraz is still a technophobe today, since he has always made his wine using granite lagares and stored it in concrete vats, selling it in bulk from the property itself. Hence his initial terror at seeing stainless steel vats, a pneumatic press and a chiller come through the door of the new winery. He also turned his nose up at bottled wine, believing a carboy to be sufficient, but he nevertheless remains on-site to supervise the work on a daily basis. Carlos Dias, on the other hand, is well-accustomed to new technologies and hard work, and while in Switzerland he learned the secrets of tending to the vineyards and managing the day-to-day running of a winery. The young oenologist Pedro Branco, keen to make a name for himself, completes the trio working on the project, designing the wine styles and taking the due technical care, as demanded by the market. Consequently, the dentists can feel at east in Aveiro during the week and return confidently to Mêda at weekends.

The first vintage was 2017 and reaffirmed the reputation already garnered by Álvaro Ferraz's wines, although this time the result was much more refined and sophisticated. The big challenge now facing the entrepreneurs is getting the wine to aficionados. This is perhaps the most difficult link in the entire chain, but Lúcia Ferraz is working resolutely in a number of consumption centres. Hopefully she and her husband will reap the rewards their passion for wine deserves.

It all began in 2001, when the first vintage was made in an agricultural tool storehouse. Some 10,000 litres of red wine were produced, the excellent quality of which served as a springboard for João Carvalho to focus his skills on a new endeavour. Determination, leadership skills, entrepreneurial vision and, above all, the ambition to be ‘the best’ were the ingredients that made the project grow and become a success story in just a few short years.

The old vines had already begun to be restored years earlier and the new ones planted slowly, with expert technical assistance from Francisco dos Santos, an agronomist who knows all the secrets of the region's grape varieties and vineyards. One of the project's greatest strengths was, of course, João Carvalho's focus on quality vineyards, regardless of the cost involved, based on the principle that great wines are only possible with good grapes.

As the vineyard area grew, the number of bottles multiplied, the customer base expanded and the workload became tougher, It was then that the indomitable strength of João Carvalho's wife Maria de Lurdes came to the fore, as she worked away in the background to ensure that everything ran smoothly in terms of monitoring the wines, managing the commercial side and welcoming customers and tourists. Later, when the company had grown enough to require separate departments, the couple's youngest son Pedro demonstrated his sensitivity, youthful enthusiasm, and creativity, taking over the marketing and export management side of the business after training at the best schools. Miguel, the eldest son, focuses on other family businesses, and as an electrical engineer he is responsible for all the automation and technological control required by the vineyards and winery. Another cornerstone of the project is experimentation and innovation, which led João Carvalho to establish partnerships with universities and other institutions from the outset. The Quinta de Termos estate and its winery are more like test centres, where many of Beira Interior's historic grape varieties are studied and revived. The recent acquisition of Herdade do Lousial, in Campo Albicastrense, has reinforced this experimentalist approach, which has already started to bear fruit and bring old grape varieties with tremendous qualities out of the shadows. The project also stands out for its environmental efforts, epitomised by the hundred beehives in the vineyards to aid biodiversity, the creation of wooded areas to protect fauna and flora, and the construction of large water mirrors to fight against climate change.

In less than 20 years, João Carvalho and his family have seen their dreams come true, providing a fitting tribute to the memory of their ancestors and spreading the name of Quinta dos Termos and Beira Interior all around the world. Since 2001, the project has grown 50-fold, and when it will stop expanding is anyone's guess.

Rui Madeira was born with uncanny business acumen, which has translated into successful, profitable projects. Despite his strong links to the Douro and Beira, through both his parents, he was born in Lisbon and spent part of his youth there. He attended the well-known Colégio São João de Brito until the 12th grade and then, while in the 3rd year of his Economics degree at the Catholic University, fate played him a cruel hand. While walking along a Lisbon street, he was hit by the load of a lorry and struck on the head by a piece of iron, leaving him in a coma for days. To recuperate from his near-fatal head trauma, he went to Vilar de Amargo, in the Douro Superior, where his father was planting vineyards following a successful international career as a civil engineer. It was this that really sparked his interest in rural life, wine and the Douro Superior. However, his fascination with wine in particular went back to his childhood, when he would spend his holidays in Mêda, where his mother's family had large estates, from Freixo de Numão to Trancoso. He was awestruck by the arrival of the grapes at the Quinta do Barrocal winery and remembers the carbon dioxide from fermentation, which would sting his nose. The famous Mêda ‘palhete’ wine was then made by fermenting white and red grapes together.

During his convalescence, he took a young farmer's course and worked as a cellarman in the winery of some friends in Vermiosa, which is now the nerve centre of his Beyra project. His enthusiasm grew and the following year, after studying 12th grade Biology, he enrolled at the University of Trás-os-Montes (UTAD) to study Oenology. His destiny was now firmly sealed. After graduating, he travelled the world, learning about the latest developments in winemaking techniques, before returning to the Douro and throwing his heart and soul into the family venture. But that alone was not enough for him. He also became an oenology consultant for various companies, made lots of contacts, and began to really get a feel for the wine business. His leadership spirit, conviction and business acumen soon made him realise that he wanted his own project, which would be characterised by careful investments and a focus on commercial returns. Along with some partners, he set up Vinhos do Douro Superior (VDS) in 1999, based on outsourcing and selling large volumes of ‘wines to market tastes,’ mainly to modern retailers. Within a few years, VDS was on the lips of oenophiles far and wide and its wines became known both in Portugal and abroad. His decisiveness and emotional way of managing situations, never hesitating to put his foot down when necessary, forced him to break with some of his partners and collaborators, but the project continued to grow by leaps and bounds. In 2011, when he had already established himself as one of the leading figures in the Douro Superior, he felt it was time to pursue his dream of making wines in Beira Interior and honouring the legacy of his maternal ancestors. He began by buying the Vermiosa winery that held so many memories and applied all the experience he had acquired in the Douro to the ‘Beyra’ project. He quickly realised that the way forward was to invest in high-altitude old vines, classic oenology, indigenous grape varieties and a distinctive style of wine that broke with the stereotypical globalised one that had become the norm for wines in the early 21st century. The results were not long in coming and the wines that began emerging from the Vermiosa winery made Beira Interior a well-known name all over the world. Ten years on, it produces almost half a million bottles a year, which it distributes to the domestic market and 13 other countries.

The Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Fundão was founded in 1516 and has been working to help the local population for over five hundred years. Article 1(1) of its Mission Statement states that it was set up ‘[…] with the aim of making charitable contributions to meet social needs […],’ while Article 4 mentions that ‘[…] the institution's social activity is not confined solely to so-called social security and may also encompass other contributions, particularly in the health, education and agricultural sectors.’ The institution's mission is to be a major driver of balanced local development, in all its aspects, without overriding the initiatives of local people or private or public institutions, but rather serving to mobilise the efforts and will of all local socio-economic players and to work alongside them. It is in this spirit that it dedicates itself to viticulture and wine production, among its various agricultural activities. The grapes produced are made into wine by the Adega Cooperativa do Fundão, thanks to a partnership between the two institutions.

The Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Fundão is one of the largest employers in the municipality of Fundão, with more than 300 permanent staff directly serving some 3,000 users, extending across the organisation's own municipality, as well as those of Covilhã and Penamacor. Although the institution's fundamental pillar is social action, the Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Fundão also has a Music and Dance Academy, an Integrated Long-term Care Unit and an Educational Farm. Quinta d’Arraboa and Solidarium are the wines it produces, which are of recognised quality and have been awarded prizes in various specialised competitions, while buying them also contributes to a noble charitable cause. These wines form part of the Union of Portuguese Misericórdias's solidarity products, sold under the Misericórdia brand.

Sérgio Nunes became unemployed in 2014. To occupy his time and develop some skills, he decided to attend a marketing training course in Castelo Branco. With that decision, he unknowingly took the first step towards becoming a Callum wine producer in Oleiros and, together with his partner, assuming guardianship over a centuries-old winemaking tradition. Following conversations with his trainer, Domingos Tiodósio, they soon realised that they had mutual friends and were from neighbouring parishes in the municipality of Oleiros. They lamented the fate of their land, where almost nothing happened and few opportunities existed for the local people. Their dissatisfaction impelled them to do something for their homeland and they immediately asked the mayor of Oleiros, Fernando Jorge, for a meeting. He implored them to recover and promote one of the region's wine-growing traditions – Callum wine – which had been produced by small farmers for their own consumption since the Middle Ages. They mulled it over, but since they were starting from scratch, they needed to create the means to move things forward. Since they had experience in design and advertising, they decided to create the company Hot Stuff Design, Lda. The mayor of Oleiros helped them out personally as he already had a similar company in Castelo Branco, so he gave them some equipment, which they would only pay for once they were making an income from Callum wine.

Sérgio and Tiodósio did not immediately think of becoming winegrowers themselves. Their business model was to help small vignerons with ‘calua’ vines by buying their grapes at a good price. Their first experience came in 2015, with the generous help of Pedro Teixeira, an engineer who put his heart and soul into supporting them. In a makeshift cellar, they vinified more than six tonnes of grapes, which they purchased from some twenty producers. Their mutual friend Jorge da ‘Vinha’ took on the role of cellar master, looking after the production side to give the entrepreneurs some peace of mind. The first wine was tasted in an ambience of pomp and grandeur, at a dinner organised by the Oleiros Municipal Council and attended by the president of the Beira Interior CVR. The feedback was so positive that Sérgio and Tiodósio's enthusiasm grew further.

In 2016, they purchased a plot of land to create a Callum vineyard, but then the difficulties began, as the variety did not appear on the official list of Portuguese grape varieties (in fact, it did, but under the name Batoca) and the nurserymen had no specimens to supply. With the support of the local council, they succeeded in persuading the Vine and Wine Institute (IVV) to recognise the name Callum in 2019, and it was included on the official list of grape varieties following some exemplary research by historian Leonel Azevedo, who provided all the historical grounds for granting such recognition.

Until 2019, they continued to vinify grapes from producers, gain experience, refine the style of the wine and sell it at regional fairs and local restaurants, the only places where they were able to do so. In the meantime, the project was taking shape. In 2018, they created the company Sérgio & Tiodósio, Lda. in order to separate the advertising and wine production businesses. In February 2019, construction began on a new winery in the village of Cardosa. The pandemic of 2020 failed to dampen their enthusiasm and that year's vintage was the best ever. In 2021, they bottled 2,500 litres of the 2019 vintage and another 2,500 litres of the 2020, which earned them certification as a PGI Terras da Beira wine from the Beira Interior CVR. Now a new phase is beginning. Hopefully it will be a successful one, to reward the entrepreneurs who care so much about this part of Portugal, to preserve a wine-growing heritage that is unknown to most Portuguese, and to bring more prosperity and hope to the small unsung wine-growers of Pinhal Interior.

The Baraças brothers – Manuel José, António José and José Francisco – epitomise an uncommon combination of unity, co-operation and harmony that comes from their upbringing. They are quite rightly known as the united brothers, because they have combined their efforts to run large businesses for almost four decades. They began by providing agricultural services, such as harvesting large fields, digging ditches and moving large volumes of earth, using an extensive fleet of machines. As the business grew, they invested the profits into land and used much of it to plant vineyards, selling the grapes to the Adega Cooperativa de Pinhel. The focus, however, was on services, which quickly shifted from agriculture to major public works. The more profits they made, the more land they acquired, and before they knew it the Baraças clan had more than 100 hectares of vineyards in a typical smallholding, employing mechanical harvesting. They eventually realised the time had come to move their agricultural business forward, making the decision to produce their own wine. They continued to sell most of their grapes to the Adega Cooperativa de Pinhel on an individual basis and used the company, created in 1987, to produce wine, since the cooperative's rules prevented its members from becoming producer-bottlers. Ever aware of the opportunities offered by the region, they bought the local fruit cooperative upon learning it was in bankruptcy, with a view to turning it into a winery. In the cold rooms, they installed fermentation tanks to control the temperature of the winemaking process. They hired the late José António Tojeiro as their oenology consultant and selected the best grapes from the vineyards to make the wine. The first wines launched onto the market were well received, especially the red Entre Vinhas Grande Reserva, aged for an extended period in oak barrels. The style is powerful and quite alcoholic, more akin to Douro reds than those from Beira Interior, but a good acidity gives it the desirable balance. The major challenge now facing the Baraças brothers is to market their entire production, but their faith in the future is unshakeable and they continue to plant more vineyards with the aim of increasing production.

José Carlos Costa Pais, a businessman with a strong personality and supreme confidence, is well known in Covilhã for the many activities in which he participates. He purchased the Quinta de São Tiago estate a few years ago and quickly planted large vineyards and cherry groves. He then decided to build imposing facilities for events, including a modern, well-equipped wine cellar and an impressive barrel room, on display for all to see. For some years, he was advised by a respected Dão oenologist, who designed the style of the wines and built up the portfolio of the Tranca da Barriga, Quinta de São Tiago and Tapada das Cerejas brands. The wines showed their quality immediately and quickly gained recognition. Although his many ventures might prevent José Costa Pais from fully devoting himself to his winemaking, his dynamism has seen his wines served in the estate's restaurant and at the numerous events held there. They can be found in modern retailers and wine stores, and are already being exported as worthy ambassadors for Beira Interior.

Hubertus Lenders and his wife Wilhelmina are Dutch and fell in love with Portugal many years ago. In 1989, captivated by the beauty and tranquillity of the Portuguese countryside, they bought the historic Quinta da Portela in Nesperal, in the municipality of Sertã. The property, listed as far back as 1756, is situated on a plateau surrounded by pine trees, cork oaks and oak trees, the ideal location for them to pursue some of their dreams, particularly those related to tourism and organic farming. The estate had been abandoned for eight years, but its wines, reputed to be the best in the region, were still remembered with nostalgia. Thus, history had to be respected and viticulture and wine production resumed, even if this meant starting from scratch. To preserve the pristine environment, they opted for organic viticulture and low production, astonishing their neighbours.

The first vintage was an adventure, since they had never made wine before. Luckily they consulted Octávio Pato's classic book, O Vinho, which describes the vinification and storage process in detail. The first wine may not have been perfect, but it filled them with pride and encouraged them to continue. The low yields and immaculately healthy grapes, with no pesticide residues, provided an excellent raw material for winemaking, with fermentation taking place in granite lagares without the use of industrial yeast or other additives. Little by little, the wines began to show their quality, with colour, intense aromas and strong flavours that respected the terroir. Certifying the origin of the wines was difficult, because at the time Sertã did not belong to any wine designation. After knocking on numerous doors, they were finally included in the Terras da Beira designation, a regional wine, despite being in a border area very different from that of traditional Beira.

In 2002, the vineyard was reconverted using the sophisticated Smart-Dyson trellis system and drip irrigation. Little by little, the wines gained consistency and were awarded medals in international competitions. In 2016, Hubertus and Wilhelmina saw their efforts and dedication recognised when they were awarded the ‘National Wine Producer’ prize in a national competition. The award proved extremely important as the Bonjardim brand became well known and sales soared, both domestically and abroad. With the opening of the Bonjardim restaurant in 2019, the various, distinctive and truly artisanal wines soon began to delight customers. The pandemic applied the brakes to this recent success, but much hope remains for the future and the fulfilment of a beautiful dream.

The Almeida Garrett family, originally from Porto, settled in the Castelo Branco district in the late 19th century, when Gonçalo Xavier de Almeida Garrett married Maria Joaquina Tavares Proença, daughter of Francisco Tavares Proença, one of the district's political leaders, a peer of the realm and a major agricultural landowner. Gonçalo Almeida Garrett was a professor at the University of Coimbra, a Knight of the Royal Household, a Peer of the Realm and Civil Governor of Castelo Branco, yet he still found the time for agriculture and winemaking in the municipalities of Castelo Branco, Covilhã and Fundão. At the time, most of the wine was sold in bulk, although a significant proportion was sold door-to-door to the local population. At the 1889 Paris Exposition, it won a bronze medal and had its name inscribed in the Livre d’Or for the quality of its olive oils and wines. Following the rise of the Republic, the Garrett family was forced to emigrate to the south of France and, upon their return, Francisco Almeida Garrett brought the first Chardonnay vines to Cova da Beira, more than a century ago. Even today, it is the only white grape variety in the Casa Almeida Garrett vineyards.

In the next generation, Manuel de Almeida Garrett, an agronomist by training, embarked on a bold investment plan in the areas of fruit-growing, wine-growing, forestry and livestock farming, and actively participated in the sector's politics as a member of various specialised governmental, non-governmental and EFTA committees. However, part of his activity was curtailed because he was the owner of the Beira Baixa newspaper, which was disliked by the regime of the time. With the emergence of cooperatives, which he promoted among the fruit-growers of Cova da Beira, he began selling most of his grapes to the Covilhã and Fundão Cooperative Wine-growers Associations.

In 1974, Manuel Almeida Garrett set up SABE – Sociedade Agrícola da Beira, S.A. with two of his three brothers to jointly manage the properties. However, the social upheavals resulting from the Revolution of that year led the family to emigrate again, this time to Brazil, leaving the properties to the dedicated agricultural managers José Fidalgo, in Cova da Beira, and Mário Lopes, in Castelo Branco. When Manuel Almeida Garrett returned from Brazil in 1981, his son José Alberto had already been managing the estates for two years. Having overcome the vicissitudes, both began a wholesale reconversion of the production areas, with particular emphasis on the vineyards. They then decided to start making wine from their own grapes. In 1985, they engaged in winemaking experimentation with Nuno Cancela de Abreu and, in 1989, due to his incapacity, they invited João Portugal Ramos to design the profile of the wines and direct the oenology side. After a short time, Entre Serras wines appeared on the market, to the delight of many connoisseurs and the prestige of Beira Interior, with the white Chardonnay making a particular impression due to its originality.

Today, another Manuel de Almeida Garrett, also an agronomist by training and the great-great-grandson of Maria Joaquina Tavares Proença and Gonçalo de Almeida Garrett, supervises the planting of new vineyards for the House and shares responsibility for the oenology with Mário Andrade – a disciple of João Portugal Ramos – making modern-style wines of great quality and consistency that are sold throughout Portugal and across the world under the Almeida Garrett, Entre Serras and Star Mountain brands, the latter exclusively for the British market. Thus their ancestors’ wishes have been fulfilled, with farming and particularly wine production continuing to be an indelible mark left by this well-known Beira family.