Azeite a Norte is at Rural Castanea — and this Sunday, the olive groves of Vinhais finally get the stage they deserve
Vinhais has always had its festival for the Longal chestnut. This year, for the first time, olive oil gets one too.
From 23 to 25 October, Vinhais hosts the XXI Rural Castanea — Longal Chestnut Festival, one of the most emblematic events in the gastronomic calendar of Trás-os-Montes. And the 2026 edition debuts something entirely new: the Olive Grove Technical Sessions, on Sunday, 25 October, from 10:00, at the Pavilhão Agroalimentar Auditorium. (Source: Câmara Municipal de Vinhais)
Azeite a Norte will be there.
Olive Grove Technical Sessions: full programme
Sunday morning is dedicated to the olive grove and olive oil as an opportunity for valorisation and development in the southern area of Vinhais — a territory of traditional dryland olive groves that deserves far more attention than it has received until now.
Time | Theme | Speaker |
10:00 | Opening Session | Miguel Fernandes (PRORURIS) and Luís Fernandes (CM Vinhais) |
10:15 | The Traditional Olive Grove: Heritage and Opportunity for the Territory | José Alberto Pereira — Polytechnic University of Bragança |
10:45 | Olive Oil as a Value Product | Nuno Rodrigues — UPB / CIMO |
11:15 | Coffee Break | |
11:35 | From the Olive Grove to the Territory | Miguel Mendes d'Araújo — Azeite a Norte |
12:15 | Closing |
📍 Auditorium at the entrance to the Pavilhão Agroalimentar, Vinhais
Azeite a Norte's talk — "From the Olive Grove to the Territory" — builds on exactly the argument we have been making: the traditional dryland olive grove is not just an agricultural asset. It is landscape, identity, olive oil tourism, and local economy. Turning it into value starts with knowing how to tell its story.
Three days in Vinhais worth the journey
The Olive Grove Sessions are the meeting point for sector professionals — but Rural Castanea is much more than a technical event. For three days, Vinhais becomes the capital of the Longal chestnut and the flavours of Trás-os-Montes:
🌰 Magusto at the World's Largest Chestnut Roaster — the only one with a Guinness title, capable of roasting a tonne of chestnuts at once. Free entry.
🐂 Miranda cattle traditional bouts — Saturday, 24 October, 15:15, at the Praça de Touros
🍄 Mycological gathering — for lovers of wild autumn mushrooms from Trás-os-Montes
🥩 Tasting of products with the Terras de Trás-os-Montes seal — Saturday at 15:30
🚴 BTT ride "Along the Longal Chestnut Trails" — Sunday morning
🥾 Inauguration of the PR23 hiking trail "Trilho da Castanha Longal" — Sunday at 08:15
🎵 Live music with bagpipers, mask groups and folk singers throughout the three days
(Source: Câmara Municipal de Vinhais / Rural Castanea 2026)
Vinhais at the heart of olive oil tourism in Trás-os-Montes
Vinhais is not only the municipality of chestnuts and IGP smoked meats. It is also one of the territories where traditional dryland olive groves have the greatest presence — and the greatest untapped potential. The southern area of the municipality, in particular, holds olive groves at the crossroads of agricultural heritage and economic opportunity — exactly the theme of Sunday's sessions.
For visitors this weekend, combining Rural Castanea with a drive through the region's olive groves is the most complete autumn experience Trás-os-Montes has to offer: the scent of roasting chestnuts, the green of olive groves just before harvest, and the products that have made this territory one of the most awarded in Portugal.
Come to Vinhais this weekend 🌰
🗓️ 23–25 October 2026
📍 Pavilhão Agroalimentar, Vinhai
Olive Grove Technical Sessions: Sunday, 25 October, 10:00
🌰 Free entry
👉 More on Rural Castanea: cm-vinhais.pt 👉 Explore our olive oil tourism routes in Vinhais and Trás-os-Montes and make the most of the weekend by discovering the territory after the sessions.
Sources: – Câmara Municipal de Vinhais: https://www.cm-vinhais.pt – A Romaria de Portugal: https://aromariadeportugal.pt/l/rural-castanea-festa-da-castanha-em-vinhais/
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