This post is also available in: Español (Spanish)
In recent years, Arzuaga’s project, which began over thirty years ago, has continued to evolve. We have added new activities and options to our wine tourism offering, making it the most comprehensive in Spain. Thus, all those who visit our estate in Quintanilla de Onésimo can enjoy traditional gastronomy, avant-garde cuisine, the wildlife and vegetation of our La Planta estate, the relaxation of a wonderful spa among vineyards, or the comfort of our five-star hotel. But at Arzuaga, we are clear that it all started with the vineyard, and that our wines, those that define us nationally and internationally, are the result of caring for the vines throughout the year. Therefore, through our social networks and our blog, we share with you some of the most important moments we experience in the different seasons during the vine cycle.
Autumn in the vineyard – Leaf fall.
Autumn in this area is an almost magical time when you can discover new scenery and the beauty of ochre, garnet and brown tones. October invites us to relax surrounded by the changing vineyard, which, little by little, will lose its leaves, but still brings us a one-of-a-kind sight. Vines are deciduous plants, so their leaves will change colour and then fall off. However, until they lose their leaves, they offer us one of the most amazing shows of this time of year.
We’ll tell you here.
Winter in the vineyard – Pruning.
During winter, one of the most important processes in the vineyard takes place: pruning. The ideal moment for pruning is precisely when the plant is dormant, with the reserves in the root—even though there isn’t long to go until the sap will start running through it again—as this is the point where it won’t suffer with the trimming. But what does pruning consist of? Pruning is a practice where we cut the plant’s shoots, leaving only the buds needed to ensure distribution of the vines, taking into account both their airing once they grow as well as the load we’ll leave on the plant. At Arzuaga, we prioritise quality and do short pruning, aiming to keep the bunches from touching one another. To do this, it’s essential to calculate the number of buds left on each arm of the plant. This will have an impact on whether the bunches grow well aired, without hitting one another, and whether they fully ripen correctly.
We’ll tell you more here.
Spring in the vineyard – Flowering.
When spring arrives, the sap leaves the roots and begins to run through the plant again, extending through the trunk and reaching the shoots that remain after pruning. For all these reasons, spring might be the season that has the most phenomena associated with it in the vineyard. When the bleeding of the vines ends, the cuts start to seal off and the remaining leaf buds on each shoot start to get covered with a cottony substance. We’re one step away from bud break. This is the process where the first green shoots appear, announcing the beginning of a new cycle. A few weeks after the bud break, we witness one of the most unexplored and beautiful moments of the vine life cycle: the flowering. The flowers will be fertilised later, and then, after a few months, they will turn into the fruit that will be picked during the harvest, the grapes we will use to make a new vintage of our wines.
Summer in the vineyard – Colour and harvest
In August, the vines go through a period of spectacular scenic richness. The plant has become filled with intensely coloured green leaves. “But besides this natural spectacle, at Bodegas Arzuaga, we eagerly anticipate the month of August because the vine’s growing cycle is about to reach its conclusion for another year: we’re getting close to the harvest. We have just a short time to go until we reach the moment when our months of hard work will culminate in picking the grapes to give way to a new vintage.
We’ll tell you more here.