Fiestas and Food/La Rioja/Logroño
Rioja closes the earliest grape harvest in its history, up almost half on last year
Heat brought picking forward by weeks. The regulator counted 333.8 million kilos at the official close, and late loads have since pushed the total past 358 million.
JOJavier Ortega, regions reporter
· 2 min
- What
- DOCa Rioja 2026 harvest
- Started
- 6 August 2026
- Official close
- 22 September, 333.77 million kg
- Latest count
- 358.09 million kg (1 October)
- Region
- La Rioja
Sources appear in the margin next to the paragraph they support.
The Rioja Qualified Designation of Origin has closed its ordinary 2026 harvest with 333.77 million kilos of grapes, 48% more than in 2025. Of the total, 290.91 million kilos were red varieties and 42.86 million white.12
Picking began on 6 August at Viñedos de Aldeanueva and Bodegas Ilurce, making this the earliest harvest the designation has recorded, several weeks ahead of the usual calendar. The regulatory council puts the change down mainly to high temperatures.1
Late loads still arriving
The ordinary harvest ended on 22 September, but trailers from later plots have kept arriving. By 1 October the count had risen to 358.09 million kilos, with Rioja Alta wineries receiving 46% of the grapes, Rioja Oriental 30% and Rioja Alavesa 24%.3
The crop is larger than the two short harvests of 2024 and 2025, at 275 and 225 million kilos, but below the 382 million kilos of 2023. The council describes the vintage as early, intense and with good quality potential, helped by very healthy grapes.34
Checked by Javier Ortega against 4 sources. Something wrong? Tell the desk · Corrections
Javier Ortega is a regions reporter based in Zaragoza. Javier writes about local festivals, food and life outside the big cities. He grew up in the Ebro valley and still judges every town by its Sunday market.