2020 Harvest in Recaredo: year of challenges
Record-breaking year for rainfall. The Penedès county recorded rainfall of over 800 l/m2 in the 2019/20 wine year, well above the historical average of around 520 l/m2.
Abundant winter rains provide good water reserves for the vines, but frequent storms up to the beginning of summer lead to a serious outbreak of downy mildew, creating a situation never seen before in the Penedès region and reminding us that nature – living, vibrant and authentic – always has new lessons to teach us.
A team effort. We haven’t been able to stop working the vineyard for a single day: first, pruning in the winter and carrying out green pruning in the spring, and then managing the vegetation cover and applying environmentally friendly and biodynamic treatments. Lockdowns mean nothing to the grapevines, and the vineyard team – along with their co-workers in the winery and cava, whose work has been interrupted to an even greater extent – has been working hard to keep the estate completely in balance.
Alliances. In line with our commitment to making wines that respect the ecosystem, we continue to carry out actions aimed at preserving bats in the vineyard as natural insectivores, as well as population studies of butterflies to determine the impact of climate change on certain species. These biodiversity programmes are part of our collaboration with the Granollers Natural Science Museum, a joint project launched in 2013 that grew out of Recaredo’s determination to maintain and improve the quality of natural environments.
Night harvest. Part of the harvest was done at night to pick the grapes in optimal thermal conditions, obtain must that’s as expressive as possible, and reduce our harvest crew’s exposure to high daytime temperatures.
Great Xarel·lo. Xarel·lo, which represents 60% of our vineyard area, proves more resistant to the mildew attack than varieties such as Macabeu and Garnatxa Negra, which have seen a marked decrease in yield.
Scrupulous work in the vineyard has been essential in a vintage that we can’t deny has been very tough due to the pressure of dealing with the mildew, but also satisfying because there’s nothing more rewarding than overcoming a challenge and continuously learning.
