{"id":15760,"date":"2017-08-21T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-08-20T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bodegasmontecillo.com\/novedades\/what-is-the-harvest-and-why-is-it-so-important\/"},"modified":"2024-04-25T22:49:54","modified_gmt":"2024-04-25T20:49:54","slug":"what-is-the-harvest-and-why-is-it-so-important","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bodegasmontecillo.com\/en\/news\/what-is-the-harvest-and-why-is-it-so-important\/","title":{"rendered":"What is the harvest and why is it so important?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The raw material of wine is the grape and grapes come from vines. That is why they say that good wines are born exactly there, on the vine. <\/span>
\nAlso, as the saying goes, \u00abyou reap what you sow\u00bb. And the vine, as we have already told you, it is not only sown, it’s also pruned, watered… A whole year of work that culminates in the harvest, one of the most decisive factors in the quality of a wine. \u00a0<\/span>
\n\"\u00bfQu\u00e9
\nAnd a third maximum: promises are made to be kept. When I told you how we work in the Rioja Alta vineyards where the grapes that we use to produce Bodegas Montecillo’s wines grow, we promised that we would speak about the harvest in greater detail. So now it is time to fulfil our promise. <\/span><\/p>\n

What is the harvest? <\/b><\/h3>\n

The Spanish word for harvest, \u00abvendimia\u00bb comes from the Latin noun \u00abvindemia\u00bb, composed of the words \u00abvinea\u00bb or vine and the verb \u00abdemere\u00bb, which means pick or remove. \u00a0<\/span>
\nAs you can guess from its etymology, the \u00abvendimia\u00bb is the process of picking the grapes from the vine to subsequently produce wine. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When does the harvest occur? \u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n

The selection of the date is fundamental for a successful harvest. It requires picking the grapes at moment of optimum ripeness, no sooner and no later. <\/span>
\nIn some areas of Spain harvest starts in the month of July, although in the Rioja Alta it usually takes place between late September and early October. In the other half of the world, the calendar is reversed: in the Antipodes the harvest takes place between the months of March and April. \u00a0<\/span>
\nIn any case, there is no set date, but rather it is the vine grower, together with the oenologist, who decide – based on their experience and expertise – the day and the time when the harvest will be given the green light each year. This decision depends on many factors, although the two main ones are: \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n