Menina d'Uva is a project that began in 2017, when I moved to Uva, my parents' home village, in the Planalto Mirandês region (in Northeast Portugal).

I left Paris to dedicate myself to preserving and sharing the wonderful winemaking heritage of this region. In 2018, the vineyard comprised three plots of old vines, acquired from the villagers. Since then, eight more plots have been added in neighboring villages (3 hectares in total).

The vines are of old, indigenous varieties, deeply adapted to the climate and soil, and range in age from 30 to 100 years. They grow primarily in schist and quartz soils, which promote deep root penetration. A few plots are situated on the region's rare sedimentary deposits. These shallower, but more fertile, soils better preserve water circulation and retention. At an altitude of 550 meters, the vines benefit from a continental climate, characterized by long, harsh winters and very dry summers. The significant temperature variations between day and night allow for slow ripening of the grapes. The farming practices are natural, without synthetic chemicals. They aim to strengthen the vines, using plants (such as nettles) and homemade compost. Soil life is stimulated through the re-establishment of plant cover, composed of legumes and grasses.

In the cellar, the whole bunches of grapes arrive in the vats (for the reds) and are slowly pressed using a vertical hand press (for the white and rosé). They ferment naturally, without the addition of yeast or additives, and with little or no sulfites. The wines are aged primarily in stainless steel tanks to preserve the expression of the terroir, and bottled by gravity with a minimal dose of sulfites (30-40 mg/L of total SO2), without fining or filtration.