Grape Harvest at Padró i Família

We’re just done harvesting our grapes and it’s an important time for our vermouths given that they are made using only the best: our very best grapes picked from our finest vines, which have been tended with care and devotion during one whole year. Our harvest usually lasts for around four to six weeks and is a time to which all of us at the winery look forward, following a whole year of careful dedication to the vines. Our vines are in Tarragona province, so the harvest normally takes place during August and September, but this can vary from one year to another depending on the weather. Our specialist team visits the vineyards daily throughout the year to prepare and enrich the soil, prune and tend the vines and check the general condition of the grapes. Ripeness is also monitored every day in order to pinpoint the exact moment when the vine has transferred maximum energy to the grapes, so that we can be sure to harvest at exactly the right moment. We harvest our white grapes first since they are the first to ripen and it is the white grapes that we use for making the wines and mistelas or sweet wines that we use in our vermouths. The Padró family owns around 80 hectares of vineyards, all close to the winery and this facilitates harvesting which is carried out mainly by hand and as quickly as possible. We only use machines for harvesting when absolutely necessary thus ensuring that bunches are picked selectively and with the lowest environmental footprint possible.