Grape Harvest with Bodegas Coronado

​One of the traditional activities in September is the grape harvest. This year, with the summer being so hot and dry, the harvest has come early, and many vineyards have had to be harvested in the last few days of August. As of today, the grape harvest is practically over, whereas years ago we remember harvesting for much of the month of October.

​Another notable change in this project has been mechanization... Most of the vineyards are set up for mechanized harvesting, so this work is much faster. Mechanization represents a major leap forward in terms of controlling the grapes that arrive at the winery, since harvesting usually takes place at night (due to lower temperatures), and it also eliminates the labor shortage, which in recent years has become one of the biggest problems (along with drought and high input costs) facing the Spanish agricultural sector.

​As for Bodegas Coronado, it is a winery that has been located in our town (La Alberca de Záncara, Cuenca) since 2002. They produce white wines (Gewürztraminer and Sauvignon Blanc), red wines (Petit Verdot and Merlot), and sparkling white wine (85% Macabeo and 15% Sauvignon Blanc). For years, they have been receiving awards thanks to the excellent work they are doing, the most important of which was the “Grand Golden Bacchus” awarded in 2023 for their 2022 Sauvignon Blanc, which they call “Charcón Alegría.” It is a very prestigious award that not all wineries have received. Bodegas Coronado is the first winery in Cuenca to win it and the third in Castilla-La Mancha.

​As for the grape harvest, we encourage you to watch our two videos, in which we explain the process that takes place in the vineyard and, above all, when the grapes arrive at the winery. We also recommend a visit to Bodegas Coronado, where they frequently host wine tastings, guided tours of the vineyards, and very interesting culinary events.

Versión en español.

Installation of an irrigation system in the olive grove

Over the last few days we have been installing the irrigation system in one of our olive groves, as you can see in the photos, with the help of the company Plásticos de La Mancha (based in Las Pedroñeras). As you can see, the irrigation system is a drip irrigation system, the main aim of which is to make the most efficient use of the water we are going to use.

As for the installation carried out, it consists of two main pipes that run to the middle of the plot, thereby creating two separate irrigation sections. From there, two dripper hoses run out to each of the rows of olive trees. The distance between the drippers is 1 metre. We’ll gradually remove the rubber bands from the trunk as the olive tree grows. The flow rate we need is around 20,000 litres per hour (we have a three-inch vertical pump that delivers around 40,000 litres per hour at full capacity), so we can water the whole plot at the same time. A filter and a cyclone have also been installed to remove the sand that comes out of the well, so that we don’t have any problems with the drippers.

In the future, the plan is to replace the diesel engine with solar panels and the vertical pump with a submersible one, in order to save on fuel. With the panels, we’ll have to water one section first and then another (and, of course, we won’t be able to water at night)... hence the way the installation has been planned.

Finally, it should be noted that olive groves do not require much water in summer as they are in a state of vegetative dormancy, just as they are in winter. If we were to water them heavily now, much of the water would go to the olives, which would become waterlogged and, as a result, we would get a poorer yield at harvest time. This is not the case for us, as the olive trees are not yet bearing fruit (they were planted three and two years ago). It is in autumn and spring that we will carry out more intensive watering. Until then, we’ll carry out some supplementary watering, as the plants are under significant water stress and, as these are young olive trees, this will be of much greater benefit to them than it would be for olive trees already in production.

Versión en español.

Fercam 2026

The 64th National Agricultural Fair (Fercam) was held from June 24 to 28. Fercam is a national multi-sector farm fair held annually, and notably, it has been running since 1960.

The exhibition area exceeded 120,000 m² outdoors, plus a 3,000 m² indoor pavilion, with a 14% increase in exhibitor participation, reaching 202. It is also worth noting that the value of the machinery and products on display reached 48 million euros. The highest figure in the history of the fair.

As for our visit, we were able to go on Sunday morning, and it was a very enjoyable visit. It’s always fun to wander around the open-air fairground. The machinery on display there follows the same pattern as in previous editions: machinery very much geared towards the area where the fair is held, in many cases from regional manufacturers, which is always interesting to see and compare with national or international manufacturers. The leading brands of tractors and agricultural machinery were also present, which is why the fair is so important.

On this occasion, we began to see several stands dedicated to drones and even a number of robots, as well as a large number of ‘sold’ signs. It is also worth noting that the Agnia (CNH) dealership is making a strong showing, as its stand was one of the largest.

Versión en español.