The winegrowers and wineries of Somontano have begun to harvest the fruit of their vines. This is the reward for their work after a very favourable climatic year marked by a very good spring and mild temperatures in summer, variables that have guaranteed good ripening and a good state of health of the grapes. Grapes that are the pampered raw material for the future wines produced by the twenty-nine wineries of the appellation.
Somontano is the first appellation of origin in Aragón to begin the grape harvest and it does so with the harvesting of the white gewürztraminer, one of the grapes that ripens most quickly in the appellation of origin. The campaign will continue from the first days of September and will continue until the first weeks of October, when the ripening of the later grapes, such as the reds Cabernet Sauvignon, Garnacha Tinta, Moristel and Parraleta, will be completed. It is precisely because of Somontano's wide varietal map, which totals fifteen grape varieties, that the harvest campaign takes around two months.
Each grape variety is harvested at its optimum moment of ripeness, a fundamental key to producing quality wines. In addition, the grapes are in good health, thanks to the good weather throughout the year. Both variables have been essential for the gradual and progressive succession of the phases of the vegetative cycle of the vines.
The Control Board calculates, after collecting the wineries' forecasts, that by the end of the harvest, between eighteen million and nineteen million kilos of grapes will have been harvested, which would be around 20 percent more than last year's total, which was one of the shortest harvests in recent years for the appellation. The estimated figure for this new vintage is in line with what would be an average harvest in the last decade. In terms of quality, the appellation expects this to be a great season.
