When Veraison starts, the vine starts to transport its energy stores from the roots into the grapes. Now at the end of June the berries will have already slowly started to change colour. The berries are still hard with little sugar and high in organic acids. Starting with the Veraison they had around half of the final size but already now we see a significant growth while photosynthesis does its job and sugars increase while acids fall. With this taking place, we are passing the end of a cycle and the start of another. The berries began already the transition from their growing / expansion into their ripening phase, meaning quality will now be now far more important for the vines than quantity. Veraison is also called the tipping point in a grapevine’s annual
lifecycle. It’s when the vine alters it’s focus from energy creation to energy consumption where it concentrates its energy into making sweet grapes.

Touriga Franca and Alicante Bouschet already show a slight shade of red, as shown in the image above (Touriga Franca).

If you are interested in knowing the full cycle of the wine production, we have prepared a section on our new website just for you. The reports are being prepared in real-time, so make sure to visit this page throught the months!