Harvest at Quinta Rosa Our life at Quinta Rosa is based on live and work with nature. Every year a new adventure because nature goes its own way and we have to stick by. The harvest is the crown of all the hard work on the fields but nature decides when this harvest will be. We have some clues or handles. One of them is that the harvest will approximately be around a 100 days after the blossom but it is a handle, nothing more! Temperature and weather conditions are things to consider. Most of the time the harvest will be in August. Sometimes a week earlier or later. A 100 days after the blossom we do a daily check of the grape juices. We do this with a reflect meter and analyse the juices in our small laboratory. When sugars and acids are in good balance, the signal for tomorrows harvest is given. The day or night before the harvest, Jaap and Renee do a walk though the vineyard, already cutting the bad clusters. Only the very best grapes will be picked. Family, friends, acquaintances and neighbours will be called and invited for tomorrows harvest. Excitements, again every year! How many kilos, what is the quality? Harvest starts early in the morning and ends at noon. After that a great ”thank you” lunch together with all the helping hands. First harvest is done. Every kind of grape has its own way to mature, depending on what kind of grape it is.