Founded in 1854 by the descendants of the Duque de Lencastre, HERDADE DA CALADA preserves the beauty and elegance of the original main building and is today an excellent wine production center, also producing high quality olive oil and providing diverse experiences in the wine tourism sector.
WINE and Guest Housing Tourism
From the 420 hectares of land that make up the Calada Farm, only 35 are vineyard. The low production is not a coincidence, let alone a fatality: it is the conscious choice for quality instead of quantity. It is also a guarantee of top wines made from the main traditional varieties of the Alentejo respecting the region and nature. Located in the center of Alentejo, the vineyard enjoys the Mediterranean brown soils in a warm and dry landscape which characterizes this area. Set in a beautiful rural setting with its surrounding vineyards and the dam lake, surrounded by the silence of the vast Alentejo plains, Calada Farm bets on wine tourism in a very familiar and welcoming style, providing an authentic experience of the Alentejo region. We privilege the privacy and tranquility of our guests who are only ten minutes by car from the city of Évora, where they can discover some of the wonders of National History and Architecture, such as the Temple of Diana, the Évora Cathedral and the entire historical center as well as the city itself which is a World Heritage Site.
EDUARDO CARDEAL
Oenologist and production director of HERDADE DA CALADA
Eduardo Cardeal is a man from the north and the oenologist and director of wine production of Calada Farm. Eduardo was born in Vila Real and graduated in Enology from the University of Trás-os-Montes and since then has always been linked to the wine world. After several professional experiences, in which he was responsible for the harvesting and wine production of several wine producing companies, he was invited to the position of winemaker and wine director of Calada Farm in 2007. Since then, he has been developing the production of the farm in a logic of sustainability with the greatest respect for the traditional castes of Alentejo and the region nature.
In our conversation with Eduardo we realized that there are three distinct realities in Calada Farm. Agriculture, wine and wine tourism. “We also have 130 heads of cattle and almost 130 hectares of olive grove where we produce various types of olive oil that are very important for our business.
The farm produces wines, olive oil, honey and table olives offering some interesting experiences too to those who seek to make wine tourism, from the bike paths to the sport fishing due to its privileged location within walking distance of Arraiolos and Évora.
In terms of wine, Calada Farm works mainly with Portuguese grape varieties such as Arinto, Alvarinho, Fernão Pires, Antão Vaz. In the red wines they use Aragonez, Trincadeira and a wide range of grape varieties such as Tinta Caiada, Alfrocheiro and Touriga Franca, besides Syrah and Alicante Bouchet. “These breeds make up some symbolic top wines of our house. We also have the Caladessa range which has an unbeatable price-quality ratio. ”
“As far as exports are concerned, we are now trying to enter the Chinese market, looking for a distributor that will make us grow the brand, and take the other products of the farm as well”
At this moment the company invoices 1,000,000 euros producing around 220,000 bottles, this number is expected to grow to 400,000 euros.
