Besides tea and wine, the Azores are also a producer of pineapples. In Fajã de Baixo — only a short drive from Ponta Delgada — you can find Quinta Das Três Cruzes: an organic pineapple planation that primarily sell their produce to the Azores itself and to mainland Portugal.
Quinta das Três Cruzes
The plantation consists of greenhouses, as the pineapples aren’t grown outdoors. As we arrive, a staff member asks us if we would like a tour, and before we know it, the tour has started — no charge!
We are walked through the lifecycle of a pineapple and learn that it takes a little over 2 years for each plant to bear fruit. On the way we visit the different greenhouses where we can see the pineapples in their different stages of development.
Phase 3 of pineapple production: real pineapples!
Soon ready for picking
Quinta Das Tres Cruzes is family owned, and the people there take great pride in their organically grown pineapples. Also: they taste lovely (not quite as sweet as the real tropical ones). On the way out, we buy one with us. In addition, they also produce pineapple jam (we buy a jar with us) and pineapple liquor (which we pass on, as I a have non-drinking agreement with the baby bump and husband isn’t a very big fan of sweet liquors anyway).
Produce ready for sale
The greenhouses are boiling hot, but the visit is pleasant — I appreciate their willingness to show us around. It is easier to follow this process than when we visited the tea plantations, simply because someone is willing to walk us through it all.
The best part still? The pineapple we picked up. Absolutely yummy. We should have bought two!