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Those of you who follow us regularly already know that at Arzuaga, we’re increasing the number of hectares of our vineyards. In 2018, we planted 17 new hectares at our winery and, since then, we’ve been growing constantly to always continue moving forward. And this year wasn’t going to be any different. At Arzuaga, we’re continuing to plant new vineyards, and at the end of April, we finished 66 hectares of vines to give us a total of 375 in Ribera del Duero. This is a figure that we’re proud of and that makes us continue to work so that each vine gets the right care it needs, because it’s in these first steps that we plant the seed of our wines.
An exciting adventure lies ahead that starts now. During the first year, all these plants are going to ‘grab’ the soil with their roots. It’s a time when we don’t do any major work, we just enjoy their growth, allowing them to be free. We don’t cut anything or intervene in the development until the vines reach around 1.70 metres, which is when we’ll start pruning.
We have to take into account that bud break and flowering take place in the young plants and we can see small grape clusters on them. These first clusters will be cut so that all the nutrients in the plant go to the trunk, with the aim of creating strong wood. This way, the plant won’t get stressed and will create a firm attachment. It’s a fundamental step so that they continue to develop without any problems further along the line.
It should be noted that it’s hard for the plant to get sick during these initial moments of life and they will almost all grow healthily. The vines are young, they’re well ventilated and they can grow with strong trunks, as we mentioned before. In two years, these vines will have developed their trunks and they will be able to produce what we call useful grapes in the prized third-year harvest.
What’s important to us is sharing each of our steps with you, steps we take to keep growing and improving, achieving our objectives and seeing right there with us every day. That’s why we want to share with you our 66 new hectares that are now part of the Arzuaga family. And don’t forget to follow us on social media (Instagram, Facebook and Twitter) to keep up with all the latest!