Seara Farm

Category: Culture and Entertainment > Tourist Attraction

District: Braga > Esposende > Palmeira de Faro > Palmeira de Faro e Curvos

Location and Rural Environment

Quinta da Seara is located in the town of Palmeira de Faro, in the municipality of Esposende, immersed in a profoundly rural and traditional environment. This property stands out as a walled space of vast dimensions, covering an area of 19 hectares. Inside, it reveals a countryside landscape of Minho, with vineyards, orchards, vegetable gardens, and pine forest areas, forming a scene of remarkable natural and agricultural diversity.

Its position benefits from a sheltered natural setting, enjoying high solar exposure. Simultaneously, it is protected from the winds by the presence of Monte Faro and a surrounding forest, which includes species such as holm oaks, cork oaks, pines, and eucalyptus trees. This particular configuration provides ideal conditions for both vine cultivation and the observation of local flora.

A Historical Legacy and Minho Architecture

With a history spanning over two centuries, Quinta da Seara boasts a past of particular importance. Throughout its existence, the property was linked to significant figures, such as one of the Captains-Major of the Ordinances of Esposende, highlighting its relevance in local administration and defense in past centuries.

Despite the renovations its buildings have undergone over time, the estate has preserved the authentic traits and characteristic aesthetics of a traditional Minho property. This care in maintaining its architectural essence and rural environment transports visitors to a genuine experience linked to the values and customs of the countryside, keeping alive the historical connection to agriculture and, more recently, to viticulture.

The Viticultural Essence of the Region

Viticulture is one of the central and most distinctive activities of Quinta da Seara, located in the Braga Sub-Region of the Demarcated Region of Vinho Verde. Its vineyards, which extend over approximately 4.3 hectares, are recognized for the quality of the wine they produce. The vineyard soil is characterized as schistous, with a franco-silty texture, and the plantation is situated on a gentle slope, with predominant east to south exposure and altitudes varying between 50 and 100 meters.

The vineyards are populated by noble grape varieties, contributing to the diversity and richness of its wines. Among the white grape varieties, there are Loureiro, Alvarinho, Fernão Pires, Trajadura, and Pedernã. Regarding red grape varieties, Vinhão, Borraçal, Touriga Nacional, and Aragonez stand out.

The estate's winery, built between 1965 and 1966 and subsequently renovated, is an example of the union between modernity and tradition. It coexists with contemporary equipment, such as an artificial cooling system for fermentation control, with the preservation of ancestral methods, visible in the oak barrels that still recreate ideal conditions for wine aging. This combination reflects a thoughtful balance between innovation and traditional practices in the winemaking process.

License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.pt