Quinta do Bispo — Lages, Portugal

The Quinta

The land, and the house that's already here.

The building itself dates to the late 1800s — granite block walls, a tile roof, and the barn openings still visible on the upper floor. This is the stone shell the B&B and restaurant are being built around; what you see below is the real starting point, next to the finished vision for it.

The Adega is a separate story — it hasn't broken ground yet. It's going up on the one truly level stretch of the property, currently open field, a short walk from the house.

The vineyard rows run east to west, low enough that they never block the view. The ground rises toward the mountains beyond them; below, three A-frames and a fire pit will sit in the open, turned to face north.

Photo of the existing late-19th-century stone building, as it stands today

The B&B / restaurant building today — late 19th century

Concept rendering of the finished exterior, with rooftop terrace and dining deck

Concept rendering — stone base, terracotta render above, rooftop terrace and outdoor oven

Aerial view of the property, showing the stone buildings and the walled plot

The plot from above — house, outbuildings, and the open field

The B&B / restaurant building, from above

Ground-level photo of another stone building on the property

Another part of the same house complex

Concept rendering of the stone-and-render facade

Concept rendering — stone base, terracotta render above

Vines planted4,000

White — Encruzado2,400

Red, barrel-aged1,600

Row orientationE – W

FacingN · mountains

Porto90 min

Honesty

Transparency with our guests, every step of the way.

Integrity

Treating guests, employees, and our community with respect and fairness.

Fun

Laughter and enjoyment at the heart of every gathering.

Community

Supporting local farmers, artisans, and neighbors, and celebrating shared traditions.

Follow the Build

Construction progress.

Real updates from the site, as they happen — demolition, foundations, framing, all of it, straight from Lages.

July 2026

Electrical service is finally in — about eight months after the conduit work first started back in December. That's the last major piece needed before construction on the house can begin in earnest.

July 6, 2026

A mowed path along the edge of the vineyard, olive trees and hills beyond

A tractor with a tiller attachment parked along the vineyard access path

View from a tractor trailer over rows of maturing vines, a mini excavator working beyond

Freshly turned earth beside a young vine

A mini excavator working between the vine rows, with the field shed in the background

The excavator cutting a dusty trench alongside the young vines

A new caretaker is on for the vines — working the rows with a mini excavator and tractor, tidying paths and turning soil as the vines fill out and the first grape clusters start to show.

December 16, 2025

A trench cut along the lane for the electrical conduit run

Conduit laid in the trench, running toward the base of the building

Trenching the lane for the electrical run — cutting through the old pavement and laying conduit on its way to the house.

July 29, 2025

Red electrical conduit entering the stone wall at the base of the property

Electrical service gets started — the first conduit run into the stone wall, the starting point for bringing power to the site.

July 21, 2025

Close-up of healthy young vine leaves along a planted row

Brought on a new vineyard caretaker to look after the vines going forward — leaves filling out nicely a month after planting.

July 1, 2025

The front of the house after demolition, cinder block walls up and cleared yard

The front of the house, post-demo — walls up, yard cleared, and ready for construction to begin in earnest.

June 23, 2025

Young vine plants in newly planted rows, with the stone shed and tree line beyond

Close-up of a young vine shoot leafing out along a planted row

Rows of newly planted vines stretching across the field toward the mountains

A wider view of the vine rows just after planting, tree line and hills in the distance

The vines are in the ground — rows of young plants leafing out across the field where, just a few weeks earlier, it was still bare tilled soil.

May 31, 2025

Freshly tilled field with tractor working in the distance, May 2025

Wide view of the tilled vineyard plot, tree line in the background

Tractor pulling a row-marking implement across the field

Rows freshly marked in the soil, ready for planting

The farm dog resting at the edge of the freshly tilled field

A tractor laying out planting rows across the plot

Overview of the tilled land, ready for the next stage of planting

Prepping the land for the vines — the ground tilled and rows laid out across the new plot, ready for planting.

April 2025

Aerial view of the buildings and vineyard land, April 2025

Aerial view of the property toward the mountains, April 2025

Stills from an aerial flyover of the property — the house, the open field where the Adega will go, and the land beyond it, seen from above.

March 13–15, 2025

Cutting back an uprooted olive tree with a chainsaw, ready for relocation

A field of uprooted olive trees cleared to make way for vineyard planting

A backhoe pulling an olive tree, with the farm dog looking on

A cleared dirt track running through the olive trees toward the house

A freshly tilled plot ready for new vines, framed by olive branches

Preparing the land for the vineyard — relocating the olive trees on this part of the property rather than losing them, then tilling the cleared ground for new vines.

November 29, 2024

Burning a pile of old wood and debris cleared from the house, November 2024

Ashes from the debris burn, morning after

Stripped-back stud wall and window opening inside the house

Close-up of the exposed wood lath under the old plaster

A room mid-strip-out, with an old door leaning against a brick-filled window

Burning off the wood scraps and plaster debris that had piled up from two weeks of stripping rooms back to the lath and stone — nothing left to do with it but let it go up in smoke behind the house.

November 22, 2024

Working through a room with old peeling paint down to bare plaster

Prying an old door frame loose from the wall

A bucket of pry bars and tools in a stripped-out room

Removing a door frame with a pry bar, doorway open to the courtyard

Old interior doors pulled and stacked in a corner

Masks on for the old paint dust, pry bars out for the door frames and trim — room by room, working back to studs, lath, and stone.

November 10, 2024

A wheelbarrow parked in a gutted room, exposed lath on the wall

Looking out over the yard, with a debris pile forming near the stone wall

The courtyard between the house and outbuildings, early in the clearing work

A pile of old stone and rubble against the exterior wall

Scrap wood, wire, and an old door panel piled up for burning

Demolition gets underway — clearing rooms down to the studs and stone, and starting the debris piles that would keep the burn pile going for weeks.

July 7, 2023

An interior room as found, still furnished from the previous owners

Another interior room, with decades of belongings left behind

The attic, full of old storage — jugs, barrels, decades of things left behind

The first real walkthrough after closing. Every room still had what the previous owners left behind — furniture, an old TV, jugs and barrels in the attic. This is the exact starting point everything else on this page is being built from.

May 15, 2023

Aerial view of the property and outbuildings, May 2023

Aerial view of the courtyard and stone barns, May 2023

Aerial view of the chapel and neighboring buildings, May 2023

Aerial view of the property complex, May 2023

An early drone survey of the whole plot — the house, the other stone outbuildings, and how it all sits within the village. One of the first real looks at the full scope of what we'd taken on.

The Story

How a Figueiredo became a Bispo.

I grew up in Warminster, Pennsylvania. My father's family was Portuguese, from Falmouth, Massachusetts — but before that, from Lages, the same small town where this vineyard now stands.

Back in Portugal, my grandfather had been the town spokesman — the one who spoke for everyone — and that earned him a nickname: the Bispo, the Bishop. When he arrived in the U.S. and gave his name as José Figueiredo, his friends said, "no, no — he is the Bispo." The name followed him across the ocean and stuck. José Figueiredo became Joseph Bishop; his brother stayed a Figueiredo. Quinta do Bispo carries that name back to where it started.

I served in the military, stationed in Italy for a time, and never lost my fondness for Europe. In 2021, after a relationship in Venice ended, I packed up my motorcycle and rode to Portugal — straight to my cousin's house. He's a realtor, and he found me this old 19-acre vineyard and house in Lages: the same town my family had left generations before.

Three years in now. Just getting electricity connected took about eight months. The architect has finished the designs for the B&B and restaurant, and we're waiting on Portugal's "Portugal 2030" grant funding — hopefully this September — to start construction on the main house. Phase two is the Adega and glamping, about 200 feet behind the house on the rest of the 19 acres, where three to four hectares of vines are already planted. Those plans still need to go to the architect, then to the City of Viseu, twenty minutes from here. The beach is 45 minutes down the road.

These days, my cousin Fernando — the same one who found this property — is running things on the ground as general manager, while I'm still handling my end from the U.S. He lives just up the road, and he's no stranger to construction: years of rehab and remodel work on houses in Canada and around Washington, D.C. before coming back to Portugal.

A few years in, I met my partner, Brittney, at a party in Albufeira — a friend was building a place nearby and told me to invite whoever I wanted. She rides motorcycles too. We fell for each other, and we now have two young children. Once this project is finished, the whole family is moving to Portugal for good.

The founder with his motorcycle in Portugal

The ride that started it — Portugal, on two wheels

The founder and his partner on a motorcycle trip along the Portuguese coast

The life built since, along the coast

Property19 acres

Acquired2021

On-site now3 years

City of Viseu20 min

Beach45 min

Cresci em Warminster, na Pensilvânia. A família do meu pai era portuguesa, de Falmouth, Massachusetts — mas antes disso, de Lages, a mesma pequena vila onde esta quinta se ergue hoje.

Em Portugal, o meu avô tinha sido o porta-voz da vila — o homem que falava por todos — e foi isso que lhe valeu a alcunha de Bispo. Quando chegou aos Estados Unidos e disse o seu nome, José Figueiredo, os amigos disseram: "não, não — ele é o Bispo." O nome atravessou o oceano com ele e ficou. José Figueiredo tornou-se Joseph Bishop; o irmão manteve-se Figueiredo. A Quinta do Bispo leva esse nome de volta às suas origens.

Servi nas forças armadas, estive destacado em Itália durante algum tempo, e nunca perdi o gosto pela Europa. Em 2021, depois de terminar uma relação em Veneza, arrumei a mota e segui viagem até Portugal — direto a casa do meu primo. Ele é agente imobiliário, e foi quem me encontrou esta antiga vinha de 19 acres com casa, em Lages: a mesma vila que a minha família tinha deixado gerações antes.

Estamos agora no terceiro ano. Só para ligar a eletricidade demorou cerca de oito meses. O arquiteto já terminou os projetos do B&B e do restaurante, e estamos à espera do financiamento do Portugal 2030 — com esperança de que chegue em setembro — para começar a construção da casa principal. A segunda fase é a Adega e o glamping, cerca de 60 metros atrás da casa, no resto dos 19 acres, onde já estão plantados três a quatro hectares de vinha. Esses planos ainda têm de seguir para o arquiteto, e depois para a Câmara Municipal de Viseu, a vinte minutos daqui. A praia fica a 45 minutos de carro.

Atualmente, o meu primo Fernando — o mesmo que encontrou esta propriedade — está a gerir tudo no terreno como diretor-geral, enquanto eu trato da minha parte a partir dos Estados Unidos. Ele vive ali perto, e não é estranho à construção: anos de obras de reabilitação e remodelação de casas no Canadá e na zona de Washington, D.C., antes de voltar para Portugal.

Uns anos depois, conheci a minha companheira, Brittney, numa festa em Albufeira — um amigo estava a construir um lugar ali perto e disse-me para convidar quem eu quisesse. Ela também anda de mota. Apaixonámo-nos, e agora temos dois filhos pequenos. Quando este projeto estiver terminado, toda a família se muda definitivamente para Portugal.

A viagem que deu início a tudo — Portugal, de mota

O fundador e a sua companheira numa viagem de mota pela costa portuguesa

A vida construída desde então, ao longo da costa

Propriedade19 acres

Adquirida2021

No local há3 anos

Câmara de Viseu20 min

Praia45 min

Sono cresciuto a Warminster, in Pennsylvania. La famiglia di mio padre era portoghese, di Falmouth, Massachusetts — ma prima ancora, di Lages, la stessa piccola cittadina dove sorge oggi questa tenuta.

In Portogallo, mio nonno era stato il portavoce del paese — colui che parlava a nome di tutti — e fu questo a valergli il soprannome di Bispo, il Vescovo. Quando arrivò negli Stati Uniti e disse il suo nome, José Figueiredo, gli amici dissero: "no, no — lui è il Bispo." Il nome attraversò l'oceano con lui e rimase. José Figueiredo divenne Joseph Bishop; suo fratello rimase Figueiredo. La Quinta do Bispo riporta quel nome alle sue origini.

Ho prestato servizio militare, sono stato di stanza in Italia per un periodo, e non ho mai perso il mio amore per l'Europa. Nel 2021, dopo la fine di una relazione a Venezia, ho caricato la moto e sono partito per il Portogallo — dritto a casa di mio cugino. Fa l'agente immobiliare, ed è stato lui a trovarmi questo vecchio vigneto di 19 acri con casa, a Lages: la stessa cittadina che la mia famiglia aveva lasciato generazioni prima.

Siamo ormai al terzo anno. Solo per allacciare l'elettricità ci sono voluti circa otto mesi. L'architetto ha completato i progetti del B&B e del ristorante, e stiamo aspettando il finanziamento "Portugal 2030" — si spera entro settembre — per iniziare i lavori sulla casa principale. La seconda fase è l'Adega e il glamping, a circa 60 metri dietro la casa, sul resto dei 19 acri, dove sono già piantati tre o quattro ettari di vigna. Quei progetti devono ancora passare dall'architetto, e poi dal Comune di Viseu, a venti minuti da qui. La spiaggia è a 45 minuti di macchina.

Al momento, mio cugino Fernando — lo stesso che ha trovato questa proprietà — sta seguendo tutto sul posto come direttore generale, mentre io mi occupo della mia parte dagli Stati Uniti. Vive lì vicino, e non è nuovo all'edilizia: anni di ristrutturazioni di case in Canada e nella zona di Washington, D.C., prima di tornare in Portogallo.

Qualche anno dopo, ho conosciuto la mia compagna, Brittney, a una festa ad Albufeira — un amico stava costruendo un posto lì vicino e mi disse di invitare chi volevo. Anche lei va in moto. Ci siamo innamorati, e ora abbiamo due bambini piccoli. Una volta finito questo progetto, tutta la famiglia si trasferirà definitivamente in Portogallo.