Whirlwind wedding

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: journalists, more than most, really need a deadline to get stuff done. And I, more than most journalists, really need a deadline.And there’s nothing like hosting a wedding for the first time – with 100 guests – to focus the mind.“Sure,” I waved, “we’ll build a deck there, and throw up a shade over the front of the Clubhouse for the meal, no bother.”It’s all so much easier said than done...but once committed, the plans had to be drawn up, the materials decided upon and delivered, and the drilling, cutting, hammering and screwing all performed around visitors here for a peaceful getaway.There’ve been many deadlines already this year: removing weeds, planting trees, shrubs, herbs, vegetables and grapes in that little window between clay soil being mud and it turning concrete.There’s been some building work, running repairs ahead of the season, raised bed making, container beautifying and competitive grass cutting, all complicated by the conflicting demands of an early start early to avoid the heat, but not wanting guests to wake up to the far-from-soothing sound of a two-stroke engine.And so began a whirlwind month of woodworking and physics to create a deck suspended over the hillside and a shade to withstand the wonderful wind from the Atlantic which – even in a heatwave – air-conditions our valley every afternoon.A hundred guests sounds a stretch for an off-grid place like ours, but with a fabulous caterer taking care of the meal service, a top audio engineer to make the most of a very talented DJ and a brilliant barman to keep the drinks flowing...I think all would agree it was an absolute triumph.Thanks for reading Off-grid and Entertaining in Portugal! This post is public so feel free to share it.I’ve built decks before, but every time I start on a new project it’s like I’ve forgotten everything I’ve ever learned and have to start all over again.I have to throw myself back into the YouTube videos and reconsider all the options for how to secure the foundations, which screws and supports to use, and how strong everything needs to be.The first decision was to make the platform a lot bigger than was needed for a wedding ceremony – so it could be repurposed as a starlit-sky dining deck, a yoga platform or a performance space.There was sloping ground to contend with, hard clay to drill into and planks of wood up to 5m long to manage.In situations involving structural integrity I always go overboard...something we didn’t want the bride and groom doing off the back of the deck and down the hillside, and so a rope safety barrier was added to the design.Amid a flurry of back-of-the-envelope calculations and help from Eduardo at the local farm supplies store, Krishna, José and I juggled string and stakes, spirit levels and cement to create a new space with a stunning view.But that was the easy bit – the shade over our calçada cobblestone deck proved to be even more of a challenge.When we built the place, the Clubhouse was designed around an uninterrupted view, requiring a gigantic reinforced concrete beam to support a 9m span without any posts disturbing the skyline.So we needed something strong enough to support more than 48 square metres of coconut fibre sails...but which could also be removed in the winter.Not wanting to dig up our beautiful cobbles we decided to use wine barrels filled with gravel to anchor the two posts which couldn’t be dug half a metre down.And after experimenting with different sized pipes and tubes, I discovered the joining sections of 110mm wastewater pipe was just the right size to provide a concrete-secured hole for the posts to be temporarily wedged into.With thanks to our winemaking friend Mauro Azóia for sourcing the barrels, our Stirling Architecture prize-winning pal Alex de Rijke for integrity of structure...and Isaac Newton of course for his underrated work on equal and opposite forces...we somehow succeeded in creating something both beautiful and effective.The guests appeared as if a fashion shoot had arrived in the valley. They watched the ceremony in the shade, they lunched under cover, they partied into the sunset and danced in fading light under a full moon.The VIP toilets trailered in for an off-grid celebration were fabulous, but Ana’s idea of us building a luxurious “loo with the view” to help us with big events was a great take-away.I do love a project...I wonder what YouTube has to say about that?With thanks to Chef Maria and the whole amazing catering team; Maria’s friend Lotte and her husband Auke who helped deliver a wonderful service; to Anton’s bar; Ricardo on sound...and of course to the beautiful bride Ina and dashing groom Niels for trusting us with their big day.Their guests were brilliant, dressed to the nines and we were flattered and humbled by the kind comments from their group of friends we were lucky enough to host at Vale das Estrelas for the whole weekend.We learned so much and were filled with inspiration about what we can create in the future.Sadly we didn’t need to make a speech filled with such a long list of thank yous at the awards gala we attended – despite all the votes we received from our wonderful readers we didn’t take the top prize.But we were delighted just to be there – to be nominated for a media award for our podcast series about wine – at the Portuguese Association of Hotels, Restaurants e Similar (AHRESP).It was a fantastic night out at the Estoril Casino outside of Lisbon – the place which inspired Ian Fleming’s Casino Royal – and an interesting gathering of the great and the good of Portugal’s hospitality industry.It was a great chance to dress up for the city instead of the countryside, to catch up with a few good friends and to pick up the much-needed wine barrels...and our new own-label white wine.Yes, with Mauro the winemaker and Oda the label designer (and before the labels have even arrived) we’ve already been wowing guests with our new white wine which is a wonderful blend of Portuguese grapes Arinto, Fernão Pires and the wonderfully flowery Gewürztraminer.And while I’ll be writing more about our wines and our rapidly growing vineyard in my other blog about Portuguese wines, here’s a plug for the next two wine retreats we are running in collaboration with the Hutchins Wine Academy – in early October 2026 and in April/May 2027.Please join us...and if you can’t make it, please spread the love among all your friends – the first one was amazing.And finally...and in our spare time...we have been introducing Ronaldo Romulus the first to the household.The little mutt of a dog who was born on April 1st is no joke to the other animals – asserting himself with the confidence of a small dog with big paws to grow into.We were introduced to “Ronnie” at just six weeks old – one of a litter of unexpected arrivals to a Portuguese farming couple near São Luís.He’s a cute little demon with sharp teeth who loves to chew...and he’s brilliantly turned everything upside down.Oda named him (I asked permission to add “the first” as I liked the way it sounded), but in Portugal’s first World Cup football match we were worried that Ronaldo might not be as popular a name as it used to be!The ups and downs of the tournament and Portugal’s ageing superstar are a constant cause of concern for our small dog and the reputation of his namesake, but he’s coping quite well so far.Thanks for reading Off-grid and Entertaining in Portugal! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.And he’s adjusting well to head of marketing and entertainment.Why tell everyone about how wonderful the views are, how cool it is here by the ocean while the rest of Iberia bakes, and how welcome you’ll be in the Valley of the Stars...when we can just say: “We have a cute puppy.”So come and see him now...don’t leave it until Ronaldo’s an old dog struggling to fetch a ball!Come and see us in sunny Alentejo and enjoy the ocean breeze…book here. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alastairleithead.substack.com