In a statement sent to Lusa, the CVRA indicated that the harvests in the Alentejo have already started and that estimates wine production having “a growth of between 5% and 10% compared to the same season last year.”

The viticultural commission, overseeing one of the largest viticulture regions in the country, predicts that “as a result of this harvest, between 112 and 118 million litres of wine will be produced.”

This estimate, the organisation emphasised, is the result of a study by the Faculty of Sciences at Porto University made for the CVRA and the contact the commission maintains with the region’s vineyards.

According to the CVRA, the harvest season this year started earlier, in Serpa (Beja district), with a grape harvest for the production of rosé wine, followed by the harvest of white bunches.

“The perspective is that, until the beginning of August, around a quarter of Alentejo producers had grapes in the cellars and it’s hoped that, until the end of September, the over 23 thousand acres of vineyard in the region will be harvested,” they explained.

Cited in the statement, the CVRA’s president, Francisco Mateus, highlighted that “the grapes collected are safe, which will be reflected in another year of guaranteed quality.”

“Considering we’re growing 8% of our volume and value outside the country, it’s a signal that we’ll continue to offer the market the excellency already known of the regions and sub-regions of the Alentejo,” he assured.

In 2022, the CVRA reminded, the Alentejo viticulture region collected around 150 thousand tons of grape, which resulted in over 107 million litres of wine produced.

The CVRA was created in 1989 and is responsible for the protection and defence of the Alentejo Controlled Origin Denomination (DOC) and of the Alentejo Geographic Indicator, certifying and controlling the origin and quality, and promoting and nurturing sustainability.

The Alentejo is the national leader in certified wines, with circa 40% of the total sales value out of Portugal’s 14 viticultural regions.

With a vineyard area of 23 thousand acres, 30% of its production is destined for export to five main destinations, namely Brazil, Switzerland, the USA, the UK, and Poland.