Thomas Reynolds, an English seaman and a merchant, arrived in Portugal in 1820 lured by the wine business. He set up in the Northern town of Porto with his two sons, Thomas and Robert.
For several years they supplied their London commercial store with a diversity of Iberian products. In 1838, they entered the cork industry and set up a cork factory in Albuquerque, Spain, where they lived for eleven years. The success from this led to new cork factories being opened in both Portugal and in Spain.
The family returned to Portugal in 1850 settling in Estremoz. However, stirred with the spirit of entrepreneurship Thomas and his family set sail to New Zealand with a huge herd of merino sheep. They never returned to Portugal.
His brother Robert remained in Estremoz to take care of the family business which soon expanded with the purchase of new land and the production of quality wine, an activity he was particularly passionate about.
The Alentejo was to become the birthplace of future Reynolds in Portugal. Robert’s first son, Robert Rafael and grandson Carlos were born here. Carlos’s first child was a daughter whom he named Gloria – Gloria Reynolds, to honour his mother and all his ancestors who lived in the Alentejo, Gloria’s son Julián produces a quality wine that carries his mother’s name – Gloria Reynolds.
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