Alastair Leithead, Author at Portugal Resident Staging

Alastair Leithead

ALASTAIR LEITHEAD is a former BBC foreign correspondent now living off the grid in rural Alentejo. He and his wife Ana run www.valleyofthestars.co.uk; Insta @vale_das_estrelas which is open through the holidays and into the New Year. To receive your reader’s discount, use the code XMAS25 when booking to get a 15% off.

Off the grid and OPEN in Portugal!

Springing into summer … and the return of the drunken beetle cult Our metaphors have moved from walking through mud to battling thick undergrowth as the moment has passed when

May 29, 2025by Alastair LeitheadIn Alentejo, Business

Sunny days: the large chimneys were inspired by traditional Alentejo architecture

Off Grid and OPEN in Portugal: We’ve done it!

Introducing licensed tourism property #12511 Well that was easy. After months of waiting and hoping and begging and pushing, of sleepless nights and stressful days, our reaction was… understated when

April 25, 2025by Alastair LeitheadIn Opinion

Winery: The stunning Mouchão close to Estremoz in Alentejo

Off Grid and Ignorant in Portugal – The reddest grape

Celebrating something French that Portugal has made its own After many years of travelling the world as a journalist covering wars and natural disasters, diving deep into the culture and

March 31, 2025by Alastair LeitheadIn Wine

Birthday shirt: Chequing out the Costa Vicentina for a birthday lunch

Off Grid and Ignorant in Portugal – Birthday presents: Busy in the country, but a trip to the town

Birthday presents can reveal a lot about one’s age, stage of life and current circumstances, and this couldn’t have been more true on the occasion of my most recent birthday.

March 1, 2025by Alastair LeitheadIn Opinion

Spectacular sunsets: huge colourful clouds reflecting the last rays of sun above our new villa|Beaches to ourselves: except for the occasional surfer braving the chilly waters|Crisp morning mists: Cold ocean air slips into the valleys before burning off in the morning sun|Beautiful all year round: the traditional summer season in Portugal is extending into autumn and spring and from city to countryside

Off Grid and Ignorant in Portugal: The pleasure of bleisure

Redefining off-the-beaten-track tourism with Calmcations and wine Our buildings are finished, the power and water systems are being tested and tweaked by the occasional Atlantic storm, and as we move

February 2, 2025by Alastair LeitheadIn Opinion

Exciting wines: Alastair and Ana unveiling their first wine - Photo courtesy of Tim Freccia|Beautiful backdrop: Tom Bilton telling the story of Howard’s Folly and their amazing old vine field blends at a Valley of the Stars wine tasting|Full flow: Tom explained how a Yorkshireman met an Australian and created an Alentejo wine and a beautiful Estremoz winery -Photo courtesy of Tim Freccia|Full flow: Tom explained how a Yorkshireman met an Australian and created an Alentejo wine and a beautiful Estremoz winery - Photo courtesy of Tim Freccia|The taste of success? The first wine event at Vale das Estrelas|Bottled up: Alastair with winemaker Mauro Azóia with the first bottle of the new wine|All set: there’s something very special about having your own wine label|Fancy a rosé? The skies match the wine in the valley|Off Grid and Ignorant in Portugal: The big plan for a second life … and why it’s all about wine

Off Grid and Ignorant in Portugal: The big plan for a second life … and why it’s all about wine

We started the Google search with escarradeira, then moved on to cuspideira and then we started calling people. A few hours and many phone calls later, we realised we weren’t

December 20, 2024by Alastair LeitheadIn Alentejo, Wine

Al with talhas interview SML - Talking talhas: Alastair in the cellar interviewing Adega Cooperativa de Vidigueira CEO, José Miguel Almeida|Tasting talhas: ROCIM winery hosted its annual Amphora Wine Day again this year|Behind the camera: Filming a winetasting at Adega Cooperativa de Vidigueira with presenter Madalena Vidigal, Alastair Leithead and Vidigueira’s director of winemaking and production Vasco Moura Fernandes|St Martin’s Summer: you got to hand it to Garfunkel, our beach guard enjoying warmer seas|Loving it: a message from above the Valley of the Stars|Mountain mist: Old vines in the hills of Portalegre|Patron Saint: Different representations of St Martin according to St Google

Off Grid and Ignorant in Portugal: Real people – and how they do things

I’ve recently realised we don’t live like real people. When real people have a problem, they call someone – a workman, an expert, a master technician, Ghostbusters, or whoever it

November 30, 2024by Alastair LeitheadIn Opinion

Time tasting: we’ve already hosted a few events … mostly centred around wine|Wines of Odemira: Diogo Ribeiro runs wine tastings at the Nascedios Winery in Fornalhas Novas|Cheers: Ole Martin Siem toasts the opening of his new Vicentino winery just down the road from us|Reedy and waiting: the water treatment plants are thriving|Shelving it: with thanks to Pedro for keeping everything level|Toasty: Simon the dog appreciates the handmade coffee tables and cork walls but prefers the underfloor heating|The new mantra: Pour it and they will come … hopefully|Winemakers: Ana Rita Bouça, Bernardo Cabral and Miguel Mimoso at the opening of Vicentino’s new winery|Rubbish views: one of the biggest problems is the ugly beaches nearby

Off Grid and Ignorant in Portugal: Opening time

We often wondered if it would ever happen, but four years after moving to Portugal, and two years after construction work started on our crazy off-grid eco-luxe lodge tourism project,

October 1, 2024by Alastair LeitheadIn Opinion

Off Grid and Ignorant in Portugal: Clearing skies

The death of DIY … and rise of the craft project Completing big building projects anywhere in the world increases the stress levels and can really wear you down –

September 30, 2024by Alastair LeitheadIn Property

Ready and waiting: it’s the tweaks that take the time … oh, and the licensing|De-lighted: It was hard to hide my enthusiasm for another trip to visit my new pal Leroy|Wine-not? Algarve-based sommelier Candace Olsen joined us for our second wine dinner at Vale das Estrelas and brought along some nice surprises|Wine-not? Algarve-based sommelier Candace Olsen joined us for our second wine dinner at Vale das Estrelas and brought along some nice surprises|Tell me about it: the solar system can see into my soul … but it also doesn’t work if the panels aren’t connected to the batteries. Schoolboy error.|Making the grade: the good news from São Teotónio parish council was they sent the grader over to level our road … what a difference! Thanks guys.|The heart of our valley: the views are still amazing and the interiors are almost there|image001|Ready and waiting: it’s the tweaks that take the time … oh, and the licensing|Quite an evening: an amazing line of wine, including an unusual Barcelo from Dão, a wine from 1978, a Mouchão and a couple of Mauro’s bottles…oh and ending with a splash of Medronho, Jorge’s finest

Off Grid and Ignorant in Portugal – Do I, Why? Fed up with doing it ourselves

Living off the grid involves a lot of tinkering. When things go wrong, there’s no electricity company, water board or gas man to call up and call out. We’ve been

September 1, 2024by Alastair LeitheadIn Property