History

A story told in first person!

Hello, My name is Elio Silva, 45 years and I am the owner of Quinta do Pinheiro.

This property is in the hands of my family since my great-grandparents' time, we go back to the late nineteenth century.

Earlier, the property produced mainly cereal, Wine and Cork. Gradually the corn crop was giving way to vineyards and almond.

At about 50 years my grandfather, Abel de Deus Silva, the plant that is still considered one of the most beautiful groves of the Municipality of Vila-Flor. At the time the olive trees was implanted in about 6ha vine, mixed culture in a project designed to further land use.

So the vines, almond and olive trees become productive in the three main pillars, until my arrival in December 1993 for shares in my father's life. Result of a long legal process between my father and his brother, a meeting Thursday abandoned! My academic training in the area of Administration and Management, and my experience in industry sectors such as textiles and footwear, also did not help much to the recovery of an agricultural project...

Wine or Olive Oil?

But the passion for the Douro and the ground speak louder! Since then I had to take a strategic decision: wine or olive oil? (As I quickly realized that was financially unviable Amendoal) Whether a production or another were fascinating ... Beginning to produce both products, I get to create a wine label, but I was realizing that I had no critical size or have the means and technological infrastructure to enable me to establish my brand in a sector as competitive as the wines.

Thus the fate of Quinta do Pinheiro was cast. All the vines were uprooted and replaced by olive groves in irrigation system.

The Trademark registration

In 2000 I create the brand "Quinta do Pinheiro," Extra Virgin Olive Oil from the olive trees my grandfather planted, one of the regions with better soil and climate characteristics (Earth / Climate) in the world for this kind of culture.

Produced from fruit from an odd mix of varieties, as are the Cordovil, Verdeal Transmontana Cobrançosa, Madural and Redondal, and whose fruits are, with few exceptions, in excellent sanitary condition at the time of its conversion into oil, olive oil "Quinta do Pinheiro" is today the best gourmet restaurants and spaces especially in northern Portugal and some European countries.

But the Quinta do Pinheiro did not end here, and in an effort to combine tourism with agriculture began in 2001 to build a house tour, which since 2004 has space for recreation and rest, and at the same time allows the traveler taste among other things some of the best olive oils in the world.

Brand growth

In 2006 under a Community Order requiring the oil to go to the table with a bottle stopper inviolable, appears the need to produce to make vinegar cruet, and thus was born the brand name "Quinta do Pinheiro" Red Wine Vinegar and "Quinta do Pinheiro" White Wine Vinegar.

Also in 2006 starts the processing of approximately 4ha of almond in old olive trees, and it has to be completed in February this year, thus increasing the effective number of plants to 1430.

I make no secret to anyone that did not sell it just my own production, soon had the need to establish partnerships with other producers and mills to satisfy my customers, which made me a taster of this precious nectar, and even today invited by various institutions or to talk about oil production wants to give my opinion as a taster before a panel of tests.

I say goodbye, putting myself at the disposal of those who in any way or for any reason related to the topic of the oil find interesting and timely to meet me.

Élio Silva