The season began on 30 August and ended on 12 November, lasting 74 days
The extreme weather conditions had a significant influence on the condition of the grapes, which are in optimum health and full of character marked by the terroir
The Ribera del Duero Designation of Origin finished its fortieth harvest on 12 November. This season has been the third-longest in its history, with a duration of 74 days. There are currently 7,551 winegrowers and 26,188.95 hectares registered in the DO.
The 2022 season was an early one, as it started on 30 August, in a climate of drought and high temperatures, which slightly delayed the ripening cycle, although the rain in September helped to speed up the process, allowing for the harvest to proceed smoothly. The harvest culminated with 105,038,409 kilos, and the increase in the number of white grape varieties, mainly Albillo Mayor, was particularly noteworthy. There were 1,190,797 kilos of the DO's native white grape, almost 35% more than in the previous harvest. 103,847,612 kilos of red grapes were also harvested, mostly Tinta Fina from Ribera del Duero.
The 2022 harvest was done by hand, reducing the use of machines this year to only 27.9% of the total area harvested. This fact is testimony to the predominance of manual harvesting, which is more demanding but also more precise, allowing for growers to select the bunches and control the production from the vineyard itself. All in all, this exhaustive work is done to select the best quality.
To control the campaign, the Regulatory Council set up a system with the technical department in charge by coordinating the Bacchus web application, a pioneering tool developed by the Ribera del Duero Regulatory Council to control the grape harvest, grape production, wine management, and all the procedures affecting winegrowers and wineries. In terms of on-site control and monitoring, there were gaugers, campaign assistants, auditors, and coordinators.
Extreme conditions that set a campaign apart
The climatic conditions prevailing throughout the year, especially the intense and long drought and the high temperatures that left no respite, even at night, have had a decisive influence on the grapes harvested. Accustomed to surviving and evolving in the most radical conditions, so common in the DO, the grapes are in good health and the average fruit harvested is of optimum quality.
This campaign highlights the talent of the Ribera del Duero professionals, who are able to understand the specific circumstances of each plot, know the best time to harvest, and are patient when it comes to waiting, analysing each specific case, and making immediate decisions. Thus, the weather was also a determining factor in the precise timing of the harvest, with the winegrowers and winemakers staggering the harvest, collecting from each plot individually at the right time, depending on its state of ripeness or the type of wine to be made.
Taking into account this scenario, we are faced with one of the most complex and diverse harvests, with a very heterogeneous fruit that has different qualities depending on the terroir in which it has evolved, the circumstances that have influenced it, and the time of harvest.
This will undoubtedly be a very interesting vintage, which will give rise to wines with a marked personality, an expression of the terroir and the hands that create them. These white and rosé wines are characterised by a relevant aromatic intensity and great freshness, suitable for combining with short and medium stays in barrels that can provide greater aromatic complexity and taste structure. And the warm red wines are very structured and complex from an aromatic point of view, and ideal to combine with short, medium, and long stays in barrels.
In short, Ribera del Duero's 40th anniversary vintage will be a mirror of the Designation of Origin's reality, marked by the diversity, complexity, aptitude, creativity, innovation, and resilience of those who transform grapes into wine.
ENDS
For more information or images, please contact Hannah Armitage at CUBE Communications hannah@cubecom.co.uk
