The Castle has occupied the highest elevation of the town since the first half of the 13th Century. The only remaining original structure is the huge keep. The Torre de Menagem stands 27m (89ft) tall and remains one of the best-preserved in Portugal. Its square plan is topped by impressive battlements with pyramidal merlons. The tower bears a striking resemblance to the great tower of Beja. Work to construct the tower spanned the reigns of three successive monarchs; D. Alfonso IV, D. Pedro and D. Fernando. Locally the keep is colloquially known as the Torres das Três Coroas (The Tower of the Three Crowns).

The castle served as the residence of King Dinis and his wife Queen Saint Isabel in the early 14th century. In the castle square, there's a marble statue that testifies to the death of St. Isabel in 1336. She stands alongside a small chapel dedicated to her, (Capela da Rainha Santa Isabel), which is adorned with tiles and paintings depicting scenes from her life and the story of the "Miracle of the Roses".

The palace was restored in the 18th Century and is now one of the best pousadas in Portugal. Access to the tower is through the reception of the pousada, the entrance is free and available to non-guests. The climb to the top will be well rewarded by amazing vistas over the town and the Alentejan plains beyond including the Évora Monte castle on the horizon.

Museu Municipal Professor Joaquim Vermelho

On the same terrace as the keep is the small Municipal Museum which is home to a collection of local pottery and religious works of art. The rooms are decorated like a traditional Alentejo home. Alongside the 18th and 19th century pottery and earthenware there's an interesting collection of painted Alentejo furniture. There are also Roman and medieval archaeological exhibits to wonder at. Two local potters can be viewed working in a dedicated courtyard making the traditional clay figures of Estremoz.

Tuesday – Sunday: 09h00 – 12h30/14h00 – 17h30
Largo D. Dinis, 7100-509 Estremoz, Portugal. | 38° 50' 30.4" N | 07° 35' 32.9" W
+351 268 339 219 | museu.municipal@cm-estremoz.pt | Website

Igreja de Santa Maria do Castelo

Also on the castle terrace is the Mannerist triple aisled church of Santa Maria do Castelo which dates back to 1559 and replaces a Gothic original. Inside are two paintings of the Virgin by El Greco.

Rossio Marquês de Pombal

Dating back to the 16th-Century is centred around the enormous Rossio Marquês de Pombal square where. It is here every Saturday the massive weekly market is held (Feira de Velharias). As well as a great opportunity to pick up some traditional handicrafts, clay figurines and a souvenir or two the market is a great place to buy local produce. The perimeter of the square sports some impressive marble façades such as the Igreja dos Congregados and the town hall (Câmara Municipal). Here too you'll find some fine cafés and restaurants. The first weekend every September Estremoz’s annual festival is held in the Rossio Marquês de Pombal square and is characterised by bull-running, concerts, fireworks and baking contests.

Convento de São Francisco

The large façade of the Igreja do Convento de São Francisco dominates the northern side of the Rossio Marquês de Pombal square. Topping the front portal is a Rococo-style pediment which is a later addition. The origins of the church date to the 12th Century.

Laga do Gadanha

Next to the Rossio Marquês de Pombal square, opposite the Convento, is an urban lake, 40 metres a side. It was built in the 17th century and takes advantage of one of the most active springs in Estremoz. In the centre is the Fonte Nova fountain on top stands a statue of the sun god Saturn (Gadanha), who is brandishing a scythe. The statue was transferred here from the Convento dos Congregados in the mid-nineteenth century and is a symbol of abundance and wealth.

Estremoz sits within the Borba wine sub-region which is the second largest in the Alentejo. The terrain is punctuated by unique soils, huge deposits of marble that have made an indelible mark on vine growing and the character of the sub-region's wines. Substantial patches of red schist spread throughout austere and poor soil form a markedly different typology in Borba, one of the Alentejo's most dynamic sub-regions. Borba's special microclimate ensures above-average rainfall as well as slightly lower than average levels of sunshine for the Alentejo, producing wines that are particularly fresh and elegant.

Dona Maria

Located in the town of Estremoz this palace-like house dates from the beginning of the 18th century is famous, not only for its beauty but also for its history and quality of its wines.

Its interior is rich in tiles from the 18th Century, and the typical marble of the region can also be found all around the house. According to history, this estate was once acquired by king João V as a present to a lady of the court, Dona Maria, with whom he was madly in love.

The estate and the wine currently produced here are named after Dona Maria. The estate is also known as Quinta do Carmo because a few years after the construction of the house a chapel was built, dating from 1752, dedicated and consecrated to “Our Lady of Carmel”. The walled Garden, at the end of the patio, is surrounded by secular palm trees and nooks filled with history. Quinta do Carmo is the best and most beautiful country house of the region, maintaining original elements of Baroque and Joanine architecture.

Wine has been produced on the estate for over 130 years. At the beginning of the new millennium Júlio Bastos started his new project, Dona Maria Wines. The ancient estate winery was restored and extended, equipped with the best and most modern technology, whilst keeping the famous "lagares” where selected grapes are vinified using the traditional foot treading method. Nowadays, the winery produces 260.000 bottles, divided into three different ranges, the "Dona Maria” Range, the "Amantis Range” and the "Julio B. Bastos” range.

Quinta do Carmo 7100-055 Estremoz, Portugal.
38° 51'16.3" N | 07° 35' 05.3" W | +351 268 339 150
donamaria@donamaria.pt | Website

João Portugal Ramos

João Portugal Ramos' wines are present throughout the world, being sales leaders of Portuguese wines in some countries. Today, the winemaker works side by side with two of his five children, João Maria in the oenology area and Filipa in the marketing department, continuing the family business.

Born into a family with a long history of wine production, João Portugal Ramos obtained a degree in Agronomy from the Superior Institute of Agronomy, in Lisbon. The first five hectares of vineyards were planted in Estremoz in 1989 where João was free to create his own wines. The Vila Santa winery was built in 1997 and its renowned brand Marquês de Borba was created. After establishing himself as one of the premier winemakers in the Alentejo João Portugal Ramos has expanded his wine empire to other wine regions of Portugal. In the year in which João Portugal Ramos Group celebrates 25 years, its founder receives “Senhor do Vinho” (Wine Lord) Award from one of the most renowned Portuguese publications in the sector - Revista de Vinhos.

J. Portugal Ramos Vinhos S.A. Vila Santa, EN 4, 7100 - 149, Estremoz, Portugal.
38º 50’ 24.8" N | 07º 37’ 43.5” W | +351 268 339 910
geral@jportugalramos.pt | Website

Monte Seis Reis

Monte Seis Reis (Six Kings Farm) was created in the early nineties by Helder de Almeida, whose family is related to winemaking since the beginning of the 20th century. In March 2003, Mr Almeida decided to build his own winery and to start producing wine - Monte Seis Reis. There were five kings and a Queen that was very important to Estremoz. As a tribute, the winery was branded as Monte Seis Reis. The vineyard is planted over 50 hectares in Estremoz, Alentejo. The main grapes are Aragonês, Trincadeira Preta, Periquita, tinta caiada and Touriga Nacional, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Alicante Bouschet. The King Dining Room is perfect for meetings, lunches and dinners, the Traditional Products Shop with their wine and traditional handicraft products and the Art Gallery with a permanent exhibition about Wine and a temporary exhibition that is replaced periodically..

Herdade dos Casarões Santa Maria 7100- 078 Estremoz, Portugal.
38° 51' 36.2" N | 07° 37 '06.3" W | +351 268 322 221
geral@seisreis.pt

Tiago Cabaço

Born and raised in Estremoz, at the very heart of the Alentejo wine region, Tiago Cabaço started taking part in and working his parents’ vineyards and cellar from a very young age. Starting as a child, he grew up learning the secrets of the vineyard, the soil, the grape varieties, and the whole universe surrounding wine-growing, knowledge which he still uses daily. Naming the project after himself, he created Tiago Cabaço Wines in 2004. Since then, he has been marketing his own wines, through which he has been asserting his personality and vision concerning wines and the Alentejo.

Tiago Cabaço has earned the respect and attention of the wine industry, having garnered several national and international awards and distinctions. Seductive and serious, the wine range is modern in style and form, yet profoundly influenced by the Alentejo in character. It is divided between the young and energetic “.com”, the powerful and austere single grape varieties, the “Vinhas Velhas” – old vines – which combines the excellence of the terroir and vines with more than 30 years of existence, the sparkling wine, developed for special moments, and the simultaneously vigorous, subtle and fresh “blog” considered by Tiago Cabaço to be the top-end wines. With access to some of the oldest and finest vines in the Alentejo, all available in the vicinity of Estremoz, with oenology at the hands of Susana Esteban, one of Portugal’s best oenologists, and having conquered foreign markets, Tiago Cabaço is definitely a star from the new Alentejo.

Quinta da Berlica, Mártires 7100-148 Estremoz, Portugal.
38° 49' 59.3" N | 07° 34' 58.9" W | +351 268 323 233
enoturismo@tiagocabacowinery.com | Website