Adega de Vidigueira expects a promising quality year

The nearly 300 members of the Adega Cooperativa de Vidigueira, Cuba e Alvito (ACVCA) begin their customary harvest today, after carefully monitoring the development of their grapes throughout the agricultural year.

“You reap what you have planted, and cared for,” as they say in the countryside, and this is a time associated with harvests. In the coming weeks, it is in an atmosphere of great work and celebration that about 9,500 tons of grapes will be harvested, which after being processed at the ACVCA, will originate the extraordinary wines of this cooperative.

“We hope to maintain this year the same levels of grape reception and wine production as last year. This makes us confident, although we recognize that the quality of the grapes this year may be slightly higher than last year, as the weather conditions were much more favorable.” says José Miguel Almeida, President of the Winery’s Board of Directors.

Luís Morgado Leão, oenologist at Adega Cooperativa de Vidigueira, Cuba e Alvito, says that “The Antão Vaz variety presents itself this year with well-formed bunches, which evolved very well throughout the year, in a balanced way”. He adds: “As there were no problems with diseases, nor heat waves and temperature shocks as in the last two years, I am convinced that, both in whites and reds, we will have wines this year of a very interesting quality“.

At the winery, this is also the time to continue to rely on the precious support of the Center for Analysis and Weighing of Grapes (CAP), as well as on the new equipment installed in the meantime, namely the line for receiving red grapes, the fermentation area with a capacity for 1.2 million kilos, and a new pneumatic press.