A caldeirada it had already stayed from last year and, early in the morning, it was placed inside the boiler of the still. Then António Afonso put firewood in the furnace underneath to heat that mass of fermented arbutus and start the process of producing the brandy.
Under the eyes – and hunches – of many other medronho producers, António Afonso moved the caldeirada with a stick, he checked the temperature, added more wood and, finally, when you could see the steam coming out of the boiler, he covered it with his head, a kind of curved copper chimney, and connected it to the pipe, also in copper, which then passes through the cold water of the tank and comes out on the other side, in the form of distilled spirit, running in string into a still warm clay pot.
All this happened on Saturday morning, at the brand new Casa do Medronho in Marmelete, which would be inaugurated in a short time. After the ceremony, which offered toasts – with medronho brandy, of course! -, speeches and choral music, there were those who tasted this brandy, still loose, which came out of the still, just produced.
The Casa do Medronho de Marmelete is an initiative of the local Parish Council, which had the support of the Proder and the Municipality of Monchique, and «its mission is to publicize an ancient and traditional activity in the region: the distillation of arbutus brandy. ».
The new equipment, which combines the functions of an interpretation center with those of a community still and shop, works in a space right next to the headquarters of the Junta, in the center of the village of Marmelete, on the former Rua de Aljezur.
"I like to catch arbutus, I've done it many times and I've even distilled it for fun," he told Sul Informação Marta Martins, the young president of the Parish Council, who happens to be the daughter of mestre which debuted the still.
One of the most interesting aspects of the project is that, in addition to being open to tourists, who can learn more about the production of this project. water of life Made from red fruits harvested in the Monchique mountains, this House also functions as a “community distillery, where anyone from the parish can come to distill their brandy, as long as it is for their own consumption and complies with the rules”, explained Marta Martins.
The Casa do Medronho, designed by architect Vitor Lourenço, combines the traditional, in the distillery area, with a rammed earth wall as used in the mountain distillers (built with the help of an old local taipeiro master, Luís Albano), roof in vain tile, and the contemporary, in the area dedicated to explaining to visitors what this medronho brandy is all about.
In addition to large panels, with well-explained information and beautiful photographs, on the wall a plasma screen shows the documentary about the activity, produced by the company, like everything related to the project's image and communication. 1000 eyes, by photographer João Mariano, and based in Aljezur.
Mayor Marta Martins wants Casa do Medronho to be «another pole of tourist attraction, but also a way to value a product that has grown a lot in the parish». And for that reason, no detail was left to chance, not even the careful image of the space and its communication materials.
The House will also serve to sell not only the medronho brandy from Marmelete and other places in Monchique, but also different local products, such as sausages, honey and sweets.
It will also have “an educational aspect, since the physical process of distillation is focused on the school's 7th grade classes”. Marta Martins, who teaches this subject at Escola EB 2,3 in the neighboring municipality of Aljezur, knows what she is talking about.
The idea is also to «create a dynamic with the producers, promoting workshops, namely on the harvesting of arbutus trees'. Because the season for this activity is now running out, there may be news soon from the first of these workshops.
The president of the Board's projects do not stop and she talks about the possibility of exploring “other applications of the fruit of the arbutus tree”, in sweets, for example, but not only.
The mayor has no doubts that this Casa do Medronho is «a unique space in the whole Algarve. Despite its simplicity, there is no other project like this». And, with it, it hopes to bring more visitors not only to the parish, but also to the municipality of Monchique.
Also present at the inauguration of this new space, the mayor stressed that «talking about arbutus without talking about Monchique is impossible». A fact that forces this municipality and its producers to be “leaders in this process”. It was through the municipality that the movement to legalize distilleries began – currently there are around 80 legalized in the three parishes -, but it was also from Monchique that the initiative to create the Protected Geographical Indication (IGP) Medronho do Algarve came from.
In statements to the Sul Informação, before the ceremony, Rui André had already said that the medronho brandy from Monchique is different from those produced in other areas of the region. Therefore, the mayor argues that «the IGP is the common hat that needed to be created at first. From the moment this hat is created, with different products within this IGP, the path that Monchique has to follow now is that of certification, the creation of a Monchique PDO. The Algarve brand is important, not least because it is already very strong and allows us to reach more markets, but PDO Monchique also has to be created».
This and other subjects will be debated at the end of November, during the congress that integrates the program of the first Medronho Fair in Monchique, which will take place from the 20th to the 22nd of this month.
Rui André stressed, at the inauguration, that Casa do Medronho de Marmelete «will serve to drink and make medronho, but also to tell the story behind the product». The mayor has no doubts: «the medronho has a very strong past, but above all it has a very promising future».
Closing the inauguration and after the toast with local medronho brandy and the delivery of plates to the producers of Marmelete (including a woman), the singing group from the Confraria do Medronho de Monchique sang some Algarve and Alentejo fashions, to warm up the environment.
Toward the end of the ceremony, inside the new House, the fire alarm went off, interrupting the speaker. The mayor of Monchique immediately put his finger on the wound: “this is a good example of the difficulties that had to be overcome to create this space, of the inconsistencies of the regulations that are poorly adapted to reality. This distillery, where there is smoke and steam, having to have a fire alarm, is something that doesn't remind anyone…»
Photos: Elisabete Rodrigues|Sul Informação
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