Herdade do Esporão boasts almost 1,000 hectares of forest, much covered by montados (an agroforestry system) with many holm oaks and cork oaks, cistus and rosemary, meadows whose colours change according to the season, and riparian vegetation that ranges from ash and oleanders, as well as open areas of willows and reeds, along the Caridade stream and the western boundaries demarcated by the River Degebe – the two water lines that sustain the Herdade and support what it produces. There are also stone pine plantations that are currently being converted/restored to the mixed montado system. These forestry ecosystems are the Herdade’s natural legacy and home to such iconic species as the black stork, hare and fox. The range of flora, which varies with the seasons, can be found in much of what Esporão does, like the scent of rosemary in the honey it produces, in the leaves, fruit and roots it uses in the restaurant menus, and even the wild orchids that appear at the end of winter, sprouting under the holm oaks of the montados and close to the streams. At the heart of the Herdade we find 120 hectares of dam area. This water is stored and managed carefully using smart quality control and use systems, which attenuate the local climate and act as a haven for biodiversity, be it on the water, on the marshy banks or in the nooks covered with riparian vegetation. Today, this ecosystem, which stems from the needs of industrial production, is a semi-natural sanctuary, where around 90% of the Alentejo’s birds have been seen, in addition to the permanency of ducks, grebes, moorhens, otters, among many other species. Herdade do Esporão is located in the Alentejo, in the sub-region of Reguengos de Monsaraz. With a total area of 1,840 hectares and geographical boundaries unchanged since 1267, it offers unique agricultural conditions - great variations in temperature, seven different types of soil and extraordinary biodiversity. The 441 hectares of vineyards, with around 40 grape varieties, and the 93 hectares of olive groves, with 4 varieties of olives, are fully certified organic.