The vineyards
The beginning of everything and more...
Veigamoura is an earth friendly wine.
Located 280 metres above sea level in the municipality of Arbo, in the subzone of the Denomination of Origin Rias Baixas called “Condado do Tea”, the vineyards of Veigamoura are to be found on the southwest side of a mountain overlooking the rivers Miño and Deva that run kilometers below, and the mountains of the Natural Park of Peneda Geres, which in winter days show their snowy peaks.
The vines are rooted in a not very fertile shallow soil, rich in chunks of granite, which act as temperature regulators and prevent the erosion of the land by rain. The composition of the soil, its fertility level and the location of the plots are for us determining factors of the organoleptic characteristics of Veigamoura. Another one is the weather and for sure the care we take in the cultivation.
Soil.
Sandy, shallow and of low fertility, the soil reduces the force of the vine plants, and the production of grapes per hectare (6,000 Kg / ha) is much lower than the average as are the yields approved by the Council of Denomination of Origin Rías Baixas. But what is a drawback from a production point of view, it is an advantage for the wine quality: as the number of bunches per vine is smaller, they can benefit from the photosynthesis of a greater number of leaves, which favours the formation of sugars and, consequently, the ripening process. In addition, the control over the vigour of the vineyard also keeps away pathologies which are associated with very fertile and productive land and that demand a greater number of applications with phitosanitary products to preserve the harvest. The vineyards of Veigamoura receive very few treatments and none in the months of July, August and September .
Pruning and training system
Contributing to control the vigour of the vines and to get the maximum number of leaves involved in the formation of sugars in the bunches is the goal of Royat cordon pruning (short pruning) with which we get, in addition, good ventilation of the clusters and a more uniform ripening, eluding the effects of very perceptible apical dominance in vines subjected to long pruning. It is also the objective of the open wire-training system which serves as a guide and support for the vines and their green parts, and that rises to a height of 2.20 m above the ground level.
The open trellis has a very high leaf density index, favouring photosynthesis and aeration, which improves initiation, flower differentiation, growth, health, quality and ripening.
