The vintage of Marco de Jerez began in the early hours of this Thursday, with the opening of the first of the wineries of the Jerez Designation of Origin.
Sherry grapes as well as that of Montilla-Moriles They are the first to be harvested in Spain, but the harvest usually begins in August. This is the earliest since there are records. The reason: the inexhaustible heat wave that has been hitting Andalusia for weeks.
In a statement, the Regulatory Council details that “the intensity and persistence of the heat wave has led to the grape reaching the minimum graduation of 10.5º Baumé, required by the Specifications. These exceptional meteorological circumstances have given rise to a great inequality in terms of maturity according to payments, and even within the same vineyard”.
The harvest in the Marco de Jerez usually takes a long time, given the great difference between the ripening of the grapes in the nine municipalities that make up the DO But, as the minimum temperatures are not expected to change much, at the beginning of next week they will start grinding in another nine wineries located in five of the towns of the Marco.
The advancement of the harvest, assures the Regulatory Council, does not imply that the grape is in worse condition, it only prevents it from being so after some time: “It can be stated in general, that the health status of the vineyard is good at this time of the beginning of the harvest”.
Before it was harvested in September
As it explains A. Mirror in the Diario de Jerez, to date, the earliest vintage remembered in the area started on August 4. There is not much difference, but the truth is that every time it is harvested beforeand it is undoubtedly due to the increase in temperatures due to climate change, which distances the possibility of harvesting as before, well into the month of September.
Tío Pepe – Fine Wine DO Jerez – 6 bottles of 750 ml – Total: 4500 ml
Given the unbearable heat What he does in the area, for years now most of the Marco winegrowers have harvested at night, a beneficial change not only for the workers, but also for the grapes, which suffer less.
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