An estate with 500 years of history, Tapada de Coelheiros is much more than a vineyard or a winery. The huge property, almost 2,000 acres, incorporates only 123 planted to vine. The rest is a patchwork of walnut trees, olive groves and most importantly, Portuguese cork oak forest (in many ways, the ancestral backbone of the entire wine industry). The property is entirely organic and is biodynamically farmed. Proprietor Alberto Weisser, Portuguese winemaking luminary Luís Patrão and vineyard manager João Raposeira recognize that at 500 years old, they are not going to teach the domain itself anything new: it is up to them to learn what Coelheiros can do. The greatest emphasis is placed on biodiversity. Everything is meticulously managed, and technology is used to facilitate the land’s health. The estate’s sheep, a key component of the agriculture, are carefully managed. Likewise, bat and bird populations are encouraged throughout the entire property as alternatives to chemical forms of pest management. Cover crops seeded are utilized to allow for better rain penetration. Further, diversity of plant life in the vineyards better aerates the ground and helps to avoid soil decomposition over time, not to mention the microbial benefits. Sustainability is as important as organics; the entire property runs on solar power, and as they are not able to farm without some irrigation, soil probes are used to measure moisture in the earth to conserve water and prevent erosion.