The Roquevale family has a great tradition in winemaking. At first in the Estremadura region and then in the Alentejo, the art of winemaking is omnipresent in Joana Roque do Vale’s memories. When the time came for her to apply to university, Joana didn’t choose oenology, because she felt she should study a more englobing subject, such as Agro-Industrial engineering. When she concluded her degree, she already knew that oenology was the path to follow, and she has worked since 1996 as the lead oenologist in the Roquevale company, one of the biggest companies in Redondo.

Joana considers her work to be a permanent challenge, in which she succeeds using her creativity to make wines which adapt to different occasions and consumers. She is very proud of all of the wines that she has created, including her favourites, the aromatic Roquevale, the fruity Tinto da Talha, and the concentrated Tinto da Talha Great Choice. To Joana, the most important is to associate the characteristics of the soil and the castes, creating fresh, elegant and intense wines.

As of 2003, she has been working as the oenologist in Herdade da Capela, in the Serpa council in the Alentejo, where she has produced three more wines. Although she admits that this is her favourite region, she doesn’t put aside the possibility of creating new wines in other regions.

To Joana, working a wine is a process of learning that involves practice, understanding, investigation, and perfecting. She considers herself very demanding, and so aims always to create wines that will please the consumer and be a source of happy and joyful times spent with friends. She recognises, however that she is not alone, as Portuguese wines dominate the national market and have an ever greater acceptance in international ones.