Discover the living
history of Quinta de Cypriano – Wine & Nature
A centuries-old legacy
Set in a centuries-old farm and house, the Quinta was built in 1696, as engraved in a granite stone inscription at the entrance.
With around 6.5 hectares of vineyards, this winegrowing estate benefits from the extraordinary conditions on the banks of the River Lima to produce excellent grapes and wines.
Cypriano’s letters
In the Quinta’s vast collection of old documents, we found letters from Cypriano Joseph da Rocha, written from Brazil in the early decades of the 18th century to his wife. One of them contained the following recommendation, now the Quinta’s motto: “Take good care of our vineyards…”
Nas suas cartas, manifestava o seu interesse pelas vinhas e os campos e até mesmo pelo envio de vinho para o Brasil, juntamente com iguarias minhotas como o salpicão e a lampreia, possivelmente pescada nas pesqueiras ainda presentes na Quinta.
A life of vineyards and travelling
Quinta de Cypriano lived in Brazil for 14 years as a judge and magistrate. He founded Arraial de São Cypriano, which gave rise to around 200 settlements in the region of southern Minas Gerais. In his letters, he expressed his interest in the vineyards and fields, and even in sending wine to Brazil, along with Minhoto delicacies such as salpicão (pork cooked with red wine) and lamprey, possibly caught in the fishing grounds that are still on the Quinta today.
These and other stories are narrated in a book written by his descendant António and published by Imprensa Nacional.
A legacy preserved
Cypriano’s story and his journey through 18th-century Brazil captivated the entire family and led to them visiting the cities where Cypriano lived and passed through in southern Minas Gerais.
This return of Cypriano’s descendants to Brazil for the book presentation was the reason for Ponte da Barca drawing closer to and twinning with Poços de Caldas, the capital of southern Minas Gerais.