Dina and Estrela have been at Quinta do Convento de São Pedro das Águias for more than 20 years now, their unique, kind, and welcoming nature raising a smile among those they encounter. They are our customer services team, dealing with all administrative, accounting, and logistic matters. They have experienced different management teams at the Quinta, but since 2018, they’ve been part of Kranemann Wine Estates, the owner of the Quinta do Convento de São Pedro das Águias.
The work goes on, but their enthusiasm fills the room wherever they go, as they share what it means to be part of the team at Quinta do Convento de São Pedro das Águias, a flagship property in the region. “This property has always been special, especially for those that were born near here. That’s why we’re so proud to be here”, explains Estrela Araújo. “We arrived at a time when the wood fire oven in the kitchen was in use, when wines such as the Quinta do Convento 1999, which we launched on the market recently, were still stored in the Convent...
Dina Oliveira takes up the story. “It’s a property that’s given a lot to the families here in the area… I remember when I started work here, and the first invoice we issued was for an order of Tawnies for a boutique in Paris. Or when the Vintage port was served in first class on American Airlines, I think it was between 2011 and 2013. The States, Canada, Europe and Brazil, our sales were almost all for the international market”, she remembers
Dina and Estrela were born and bred in the Douro, and once they finished their training, unlike most, they never thought about leaving, and certainly not for good.
“I feel at home here. My family has always had links to agriculture and the land here in Tabuaço. I leave the Estate and walk home for lunch...I wouldn’t want to work elsewhere”, says Dina Oliveira. Estrela was born in Peso da Régua, and her grandparents produced port: “I remember being young and going into the wine cellar at harvest time. When I studied, I did my internship in Lisbon, I spent time in Porto, but I always wanted to come home. I’m a fan of the city but just for visiting at the weekend”, she says.
On the Estate, the years go by, people come and go, but the traditions remain. Harvest is a particularly special time, marked by the whole team in a particular way. “We celebrate and keep the tradition going of offering the owners an olive branch decorated with bunches of grapes as our thank you. Harvest is the time we’ve all been waiting for, as in the end, it is the fruit of a year’s work, and means we make the wine that keeps all the activities here going”, she states.
So then, what is your favourite wine? “Well, I’m a red wine person, but the Kranemann Tawny 20 years is really something quite special...” says Dina Oliveira. “I really like the Hasso White. Who doesn’t like the Kranemann Tawny 20 years!” adds Estrela Araújo. And, of course, they keep on wearing those smiles!
