Quinta De Soalheiro - Winery

Family Winery in Melgaco

As far as our memory goes, Alvarinho was always present in our Territory. In our region, grapevines were traditionally planted around the outskirts of a parcel, with grains cultivated in the centre. In 1974, João António Cerdeira and his parents, António Esteves Ferreira and Maria Cerdeira, decided to break from tradition and plant a full parcel as a continuous vineyard of Alvarinho. Since this first innovation of João António, our family has been linked to the development of Alvarinho cultivation in Melgaço.

Organic Farming at Soalheiro

Today, third-generation family members, siblings Maria João and António Luís, along with their mother Maria Palmira Cerdeira, have embraced this spirit of innovation. António Luís, with a graduate degree in oenology, has built a profound knowledge of the Alvarinho grape variety throughout his life. Maria João, a veterinarian by profession, assumed the responsibility for viticulture and successfully introduced organic farming into our vineyards. Our innovative vision extends to the Territory and includes the sustainable revitalization of the surrounding rural area. This has led us to invest in wine tourism and, most recently, in herbal tea production.

Since The Beginning, forever: Territory

Since the beginning, our work has been inspired by the Territory that surrounds us. When we speak about our Territory, emphasised with a capital ‘T’, we speak about more than just the land where we are located. Our Territory embodies the natural conditions of our landscape, the people working on it, and all the biodiversity that inhabits it. Our commitment to sustainability is about more than an answer to the climate emergency – it is about protecting our land, its people, their culture, as well as our planet. With the desire and hard work of our team, a commitment to quality, a bit of creativity, and a respect for everything that surrounds us, we got where we are today, and we will continue moving forward.