Herdade Grande

At Vidigueira, Eng. António was one of the references in the wine business, first as a producer for the local Coop, and after at Herdade Grande, where he started to bottle his own wines under this label. He became one of the most significant producers in Alentejo. Not only with the way he showed the enormous potential of local and classical varieties (such as Antão Vaz, Roupeiro, Aragonez or Trincadeira), but also how he took a chance on experimenting with different grape varieties (Viosinho, Rabigato, Alvarinho, Sousão e Tinta Míuda) and the new approaches to all of them.

Long before I finished my degree, I accepted his challenge of representing Herdade Grande on a few wine fairs, including Prowein. Nevertheless, one of these days my phone rang. It was Eng. António Lança once again, this time with a simple invitation for lunch. And I went happy and excited because there aren’t many things better in life than sharing food and wine with a person with such enormous, rich and captivating life history. I was far from thinking that by the end of that lunch I would be the new consultant winemaker of Herdade Grande.

What can I say?! It is an enormous pride to walk into this house, an example of some of the best work done in Vidigueira, to the point of having already won some awards, such as “Talha de Ouro” for the best wine in Alentejo. It is also a privilege to live this friendship, sharing experiences with Eng. António Lança, a well of knowledge and a storyteller who enriches and delights the lives of the ones around him.

I genuinely believe, that together, we can produce some of the best wines in Alentejo.

So, let’s do it!