The 987-ha site on the volcanic island of Pico, the second-largest in the Azores archipelago, consists of a remarkable pattern of spaced-out, long linear walls running inland from and parallel to the rocky shore. The stone walls were built to protect thousands of small, contiguous, rectangular plots from wind and salt spray. Vines were, and continue to be, planted within the small and soilless plots. The extensive system of small fields, as well as the buildings, pathways and wells, ports and ramps, were produced by generations of farmers enabling the production of wine.

The Landscape of the Pico Island Vineyard Culture is an outstanding example of a creative solution against the odds, showcasing the adaptation of farming practices to a remote and challenging environment. The extraordinarily beautiful human-made landscape of small, stone-walled fields is a testimony to generations of small-scale farmers who, in a hostile environment, created a sustainable living and much-valued wine.