Our team

Hardworking and always keen to learn, Margarida studied radiology. But after living afar, her love for Melgaço brought her back to her roots and made her join our team. Margarida does the administrative work at Soalheiro and supports Wine Tourism and Communication. She is a mother of three kids and says that the most important thing is family. That is why she enjoys working here so much – our family spirit means our team is more than just colleagues. For Margarida, it is important that Soalheiro continues evolving and keeps the same spirit.

Inquisitive and talkative, Daniel loves the countryside and the vineyards in the region. His true passion, however, is the winemaking process, so his job is more focused on the vats. He carries out all winery operations methodically and thoroughly, and his expertise in winemaking equipment is an added value for the team. His inquisitiveness has also led him to discover another passion: wine tasting. He describes the stages of winemaking and the different wine profiles with a precision and ease that captivates his listeners.

Committed and cheerful, Sara was among one of the first to join the Soalheiro family. Born and bred in Melgaço, she is the perfect ambassador for the region and the gastronomic traditions of our land. She has been with us for more than a decade and has done a little bit of everything in this house, but what she enjoys doing most is the wine bottling and packaging. The process is now more mechanised, but Sara says that she doesn’t stand far away from the machines, always keeping her eyes on the process and making sure everything is in order.

It is at Soalheiro winery that Edmundo spends most of his days. He carries out all his tasks with rigour and dedication, always bringing a cheerful energy to the vats while he whistles and sings. Passionate for gastronomy and the Minho river, he experiments with some really special lamprey recipes. And it’s not just any lamprey – he catches them himself.  

A man of few words, Luís stands out for his rigour and exactness. The vine and the wine are part of his background, but it is at the winery that he spends most of his days, always with a smile. He came from the construction world and discovered at Soalheiro the tranquillity he needed. He loves the authenticity and the simple things in the Territory, like letting his children run free through the vineyards. He says that the wax seal is an art that requires a lot of patience, giving him a certain calmness. All the Soalheiro bottles that need this process pass through his hands.

The atmosphere at Soalheiro vineyards is always cheerful and fun when Flávio is around. His infectious sense of humour permeates the entire team. He is an excellent storyteller, and his positive energy brings the team to life. A jack of all trades, proactive and skilful, he spends most part of his days in the vineyards, but also provides support to equipment maintenance and servicing. His love for the outdoors is evident through the passion and respect with which he talks about nature.

Marta’s father planted his first vines when she was born, marking her entry into the world of wine. Spontaneous and fun, Marta joined Soalheiro’s team to work with the area of Wine Tourism and Communication. Expressive, dedicated, and hardworking, she explains the details of the terroir and winemaking with passion and commitment. In fact, it only takes a wine tasting guided by her to understand her charisma and passion for wine tourism. She is a true ambassador for Soalheiro, Alvarinho, and the Territory.

Mónica is part of the Wine Tourism team. Her creativity and originality make every tasting different. She is inspired by the details and lives her passion for the terroir. Mónica loves to teach about Soalheiro and the Territory to people coming from all corners of the world. She graduated in visual arts and explores her artistic background in our social networks.

Tiago, following in his father’s footsteps, pursued studies in construction, but his passion for viticulture spoke louder. Today, he works in the field helping to take care of our vineyards. His passion is driving the machines, namely tractors and forklifts, which he does as if he was born behind the wheel. When he has the time, he loves to cook in the vineyard and enjoy local delicacies with a view of the unmistakable landscape of our Territory.

Hardworking and dedicated, Rafael likes to get his hands dirty. He worked for 5 years in a rubber factory but he always knew that he wanted to work in the field. The opportunity arose in Soalheiro and he seized it, embracing the opportunity to be outdoors. If we don’t see him in the fields of Soalheiro, we will definitely see him taking care of his own vineyards. Fun, hardworking and dedicated, he is attentive to detail and he cares, like the rest of the team, for all the particularities of our vineyards.

Always attentive and organised, António lives wine in his heart and soul. He rigorously organises his daily work and guarantees that nothing deviates from the plan. His good humour is contagious and you immediately feel a cosy familiarity when you are near him. António did not find his passion immediately, but in his 20s he started enjoying and working more in the countryside. The opportunity to be a tractor driver arose at Soalheiro and he decided to take it. He values ​​the good atmosphere at the winery.

It was with an enormous will to learn that Mauricio joined the Soalheiro team. A recent graduate in Marketing and Communication, he saw an opportunity at Soalheiro to combine his taste for the world of wines with the desire to remain in his native land. It is in logistics that he finds his vocation, where his abilities are tested daily. Organised, methodical, and dynamic, he uses his expertise to ensure that Soalheiro products reach every part of the world in exceptional condition. A drummer in his spare time, it is in music that he finds the energy he needs to carry out all tasks with the utmost rigour. 

Miguel is an agricultural engineer and responsible for the Club of Producers. He concentrates on the viticulture at Soalheiro, focusing on issues related to sustainability and environmental responsibility. He has been working all over Portugal, but his passion for the Territory and for Alvarinho brought him back here. He loves spending the day in the vineyards, in contact with the producers and helping to make Alvarinho one of the most noble varieties in Portugal.

Odete has a contagious smile. She came to Soalheiro through the vineyard, she worked at the winery, and nowadays she takes great care of herbal teas. She works in all steps of the process, from the reproduction of the plants, taking care of them when growing in our fields, pruning them while maintaining the integrity of leaves, and packaging with care and affection. She loves figure skating (always accompanying her daughter to trainings and competitions), and dancing (despite saying she has two left feet).

Always in a positive mood, João Bicha is always ready to help the team and lift its spirit. A long-time friend of the family, before officially working at Soalheiro João was already part of the house’s grape harvest team. He has been on this team longer than anyone else. For that reason, he won the status of operator of the presses during harvest time. Currently, he does a bit of everything at the winery, from taking care of the vats, to performing bâtonnage in the barrels, to sparkling dégorgement, to bottling and labelling.  

Vitor João studied hotel management and completed several cooking courses, but it was his passion for taking care of his family’s vineyards and his connection to wine that brought him to Soalheiro. He started in the winery, working on the filling line and in the sparkling wine degórgement, but his ease of sharing knowledge and the willingness to communicate led him to join the Wine Tourism team – he says that he likes “to know a little bit of everything and to be useful in different company areas”. Besides the vineyard, he shares his spare time with another one of his passions, music.

Rafael joined Soalheiro for a temporary job. Coming from the world of assembling concerts, he  felt challenged to embrace a new world, the world of wines. This led him to join our production team. He works in different areas of the winery, from the bottling line to logistics. Rafel reinforces the Soalheiro team with commitment and enthusiasm, which is why he is an asset to all of his colleagues. 

João decided to trade the fast pace of the television industry in Porto for the calm of the Territory. Two days after he settled here, he discovered he was going to be a father, so he rolled up his sleeves and bought a vineyard. He came to Soalheiro to join the Producers Club and ended up handling our Communication. He says that the human quality and beauty around here keep surprising him every day.

Cláudia makes sure our winery is always shining, clean and pretty, something she used to do in her beauty parlour. She left when she heard that there was an opportunity to work for Soalheiro. Always willing to help with anything, Cláudia says that the days at Soalheiro are enjoyable because it is like being at home. The main difference is that her two boys are not running around.

André developed the herbal teas project in Soalheiro from scratch. As a biologist, he has the rigour and methodology that plants demand, and the creativity to turn them into something healthy and tasty. His aim is to continue improving the quality of herbal teas, and to create new ones in the future, because he believes that the project has incredible potential.

André is the youngest and most recent member of our vineyard team. Born in Melgaço, the passion he has for viticulture is reflected in the dedication he employs in his everyday work. He joined us to do his final internship and ended up staying as part of the team. He does a little bit of everything at Soalheiro, but what he really likes is being outdoors, surrounded by vineyards and mountains.

Being part of the herbal teas team brings Andreia great joy. She especially likes our process of drying the herbs, because it ensures the maintenance of all the qualities that the plants develop. She enjoys respecting what nature creates and assuring a harmonious completion of the whole process, leaving the integrity of the leaves and a high percentage of essential oils. She is proud to be taking part in an innovative project in our Territory and pleased to watch the way it can reach anyone, anywhere.

Juliana was born and raised in Melgaço, but it was in Coimbra that she found her passion for Graphic Design. She quickly wanted to return North and found in Soalheiro a place to grow and develop her creativity. Humorous, fun, and eager to learn, she is now part of the Communication team as a designer. Each project is a challenge where she applies her passion and tries to leave her mark, always with an eye on Soalheiro’s “personality”.

Sandra grew up in Monção and the connection to her origins made her return to Portugal after 9 years in Switzerland, working in flower greenhouses. She says that it is working in the land that she feels good and that, no matter how many turns, “the root is stronger and always calls me”. Today, she is part of our infusions team and loves to combine her taste for working in the land, outdoors, with the aroma of aromatic plants. 

Jorge was born in Monção, but it was in Porto that he grew up and graduated in Business Management. When he finished his degree, he ended up returning to Monção. He has always performed administrative functions in the jobs he has had. At Soalheiro he says he has found a place where he feels fulfilled – his taste for languages and interaction with customers led him to embrace our logistics team with enthusiasm and dedication. 

Sheila is Brazilian and, according to her, she came to live in Portugal by chance. She had a ticket to return to Brazil after 3 months, but she never used it. Despite the cold (which she doesn’t like), Melgaço won her over. She didn’t hesitate to come to Soalheiro when the opportunity arose-“I came in the twinkling of an eye“-and she is now part of our maintenance team, mainly being in charge of the cellar. She says that she was impressed, at first, with the familiar spirit felt at Soalheiro. 

Andreia was born in Ponte de Lima, she studied Marketing and Business Communication and did a post-graduation in Digital Marketing. Digital Marketing. After some professional experiences, she was looking for a new challenge, she heard about the opportunity in Soalheiro and decided to give it a try. She came to Melgaço and joined our Communication team where she does a bit of everything.

Asun is an experienced winemaker and passionate about Alvarinho since always, today she is our winery and logistics manager. Born in Arbo, on the Galician bank of the Minho River, she used to see our winery every day from her parents’ home and after years of study and several projects at other wineries, she joins the Soalheiro winemaking team.

Miguel is our financial manager. Born and raised in Monção, apart from a brief stay in Porto where he graduated in Management, he has never left the territory. In recent years he has divided his time between his work as a financial manager, his studies and football. With his football shoes now in the bag, he continues to dedicate his free time doing sport.

Tiago was a neighbour of Soalheiro until his youth. He grew up in Alvaredo, in the house that is now our Herbal Tea Guest House. At the age of 14, he was already out in the fields and winery helping with the Soalheiro harvest. As he says himself, “a good son makes it home”!  He swapped the fast pace of the restaurant industry for the tranquility of the countryside and the herbal teas. And this change couldn’t have come at a better moment, now that he’s a father for the first time.

Maria lives on the other side of the Minho River, in Arnoia, Ourense. Her passion for wine and background in Agricultural Engineering and Agrifood Science led her to develop a study on wine and yeasts in fermentation, which she applied in practice in several wineries. She accepted the invitation to become part of our winery team and now provides support in the control and analysis of wines. Excited to be at a winery that makes sparkling wine for the first time, what fascinates her most about Soalheiro is the Innovation Cellar.

Samantha is part of our Wine Tourism team. Born in Galicia, this side of the Minho River was already familiar to her for professional reasons. She has a degree in Hotel Services and cooking is her great passion – “I’ve always worked in the kitchen” – and that’s where she spends most of her time at Soalheiro. Lu won her over from day one and now she goes with her everywhere.

Tânia is from Melgaço and has always been around. She sought independence from an early age, living on her own at 18 and buying a house at 22. She had recently discovered that she was going to be a mother when she came to Soalheiro. She is part of our wine tourism team, an area that has captivated her since she graduated in Tourism. With a baby son, managing her free time is now a challenge, but she still manages to take a few hours off to continue practicing an old hobby, horse riding.

Rafael is Melgacense. He has lived in Viseu for 8 years and there, he managed to balance his studies with working in the restaurant industry, a field he really enjoys. Before returning to Melgaço he also lived in the South of Spain and in Galiza. Shortly after he became a father, an opportunity appeared at Soalheiro, which he immediately grabbed. He says that joining the herbal tea team has given him the calm and time he needs to witness his son’s first steps.

Marina is part of the wine tourism team. She graduated in IT, but it was to agriculture and hotel services that she dedicated herself in recent years. After working for 6 years in a cowshed, she got her “hands dirty” in a pizza restaurant and, since then, has worked in the kitchen and bar. When she heard about the opportunity to work at Soalheiro, she contacted us immediately. She is part of our Viticulturists Club, so in her spare time she dedicates herself to the vineyard and her family.

Cláudio has a degree in Multimedia Design, an area he worked for 6 years, followed by some time in Germany in the Logistics area. He decided to return to Melgaço and embraced a new challenge at Soalheiro. He is one of the faces of our Wine Tourism team and conquers everyone with his charisma and good energy. Always cheerful, he never says no to a get-together or a party.

Alexandre is from Melgaço, and left home at an early age to study and work. He trained as a contractor in Braga, a job he did in Póvoa de Varzim. He then worked for four years in a funeral home until he emigrated to France. When he returned to Melgaço, the opportunity to work at Soalheiro emerged and he joined our winery team.

Alberto was born in Melgaço, has always lived in the territory. He was a baker for twelve years until the opportunity arose to work at Soalheiro. He is part of the winery team and is increasingly happy with the change: appreciates the good working environment and continues to be surprised by the amount of details he learns every day. 

Tiago has a degree in Accounting, he even ventured into the area of Meteorology, but as he says, “it was just a setback”. Back in Melgaço, he did an internship and worked in the training area until the opportunity arose to reinforce our Financial team and come to Soalheiro. When he is not in the office, he is probably in the gym or enjoying the good weather on a café terrace, when he doesn’t have to go to the vineyard to help his parents.

Luísa came to Soalheiro to strengthen our Quality team. Born in Valença, where she lives, she graduated in Food Engineering and specialised as a Hygiene in the Workplace Advanced Technician, areas in which she has always worked. Over the last few years she has worked in a canning factory in Matosinhos and two hypermarkets in Monção and Melgaço. She says that what captivates her most at Soalheiro is the team spirit.

Joyce crossed borders to return to her roots. She’s been here for three years and says she wouldn’t swap the peace and quiet of Melgaço for the hustle and bustle of Paris. She worked as Operations Manager at the Melgaço thermal centre until she grabbed the opportunity to be part of the Soalheiro Wine Tourism team.