Quinta das Toroas - Wines in the heart of the Serra de S. Mamede

We went to Quinta das Toroas, in the heart of the Serra de S. Mamede, to discover a beautiful wine business belonging to a family with Alentejo roots.
We were welcomed by Constança, the daughter of João Laranjo (owner of the farm), who is currently running the business, and we had the opportunity to learn a little more about the history of this place.
Constança's parents left Portalegre a long time ago to join the world of work in Lisbon, never forgetting their roots and always aiming to return to the Alentejo as soon as they could. The opportunity arose in 2000, when Constança was just four years old, when they bought a house in Reguengo.
Passionate about the S. Mamede mountain range, they couldn't see themselves living anywhere else but here and ended up buying the current Quinta das Toroas in 2004, which, coincidentally, was located right in front of the family home.
João Laranjo had and still has his job, but his passion for wine has always been with him, a passion he passed on to his daughter Constança, who grew up and played in the middle of the vineyards and around a whole wine-growing environment.
In 2006 they planted their first plot of vines, only with red grape varieties: Aragonês, Trincadeira, Syrah, Touriga Nacional and Alicante Bouschet, but it was in 2008 that they decided to open the wine business and since then the dream has become a reality and has grown over the years. It wasn't until 2010, with the help of some friends, that the first wines were produced. In 2017, they planted the last parcel of vines on the Quinta, with Fernão Pires and Arinto white grape varieties.
Constança graduated in agronomic engineering from the Instituto Superior de Agronomia in Lisbon and, in 2020 during the pandemic, decided to return and continue the family business. She grew up in this world and it is here that she wants to continue reconciling this activity with other consultancy work she does for other organisations.
Quinta das Toroas has 2 hectares, but with the passage of time and the need to increase production, they ended up buying grapes from suppliers in the Serra de S. Mamede, exclusively from the old vines variety, thus boosting the local economy. They are committed to wines that preserve the characteristics of the grapes and the region, always taking the principle of the minimum necessary intervention, both in the vineyard and in the cellar.
The company's strategy focuses on preserving and restoring the oldest vineyards, listening to the elders and working alongside them so that they don't abandon the vineyards. They also endeavour to use older viticultural techniques in order to avoid excessive chemical intervention.
At the moment they have five references, two Quinta das Toroas wines, white and red, and Arrelias, the company's most recent launch, in white, red and rosé versions.
Constança referred to this latest launch of Arrelias as a wine that was made unintentionally and was born out of successive "arrelias", in other words, various setbacks that ended up resulting in a wine of excellence that is much appreciated by everyone.
For the future they intend to maintain the same references and are preparing a space where they can receive people, hold wine tastings and sample regional products in a family atmosphere.
If you're curious about these wines and have fallen in love with this beautiful story, you can buy these products online.

Quinta das Toroas
Reguengo
7300-407 Portalegre
Contact: +351 961 298 666
Email: quintadastoroas.vinhos@gmail.com