Superfood or sweet excuse? What grapes and wine really bring us

At the market in Moraira, I see them piled high: bunches of grapes — blue, green and sometimes almost black. While tourists casually slip a bunch into their bags, I know there’s far more behind those grapes than just a tasty snack. In Spain they say uvas para la vida — grapes for life. And there’s real truth in that saying.

Small fruits, big power

Grapes are packed with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. Polyphenols such as resveratrol help protect your cells against oxidative stress — a fancy way of saying they help your body cope with everyday wear and tear from stress, sun and ageing. No wonder grapes are so often labelled a “superfood.”

From vineyard to glass

What I love about the Costa Blanca and the Costa del Sol is that the grape here isn’t just a fruit — it’s a symbol of the region. In September and October, you see the bunches hanging in the vineyards, ready to be picked. Some end up as fresh fruit on the market, others in the bodegas, where they’re turned into wine. And so you get a fruit that returns to our daily lives in many forms.

As I walk through the market, I think of Clara — yes, the one from the photos! She can look at a bunch of grapes for minutes, as if studying a painting. “Look at that colour,” she said recently in the vineyard, “you can still see the sun in it.” And she’s right, really. In every grape there’s something of the land, the light and the time that came before it — much more than just flavour.

Enjoying with awareness

You might be thinking: “Great — if grapes are a superfood, then wine must be too?” Sadly, that’s not quite how it works. The grape’s real power lies in the flesh and the skin, and those truly shine when eaten fresh. But that doesn’t mean wine has no place. A good glass of red still contains polyphenols — just in much smaller amounts. So it’s all about balance: grapes and grape juice for nourishment, wine for the experience.

Sustainable and mindful

There’s often debate about pesticides and chemicals in wine growing. It’s good that conversation is happening — but thankfully, the picture is changing fast. More and more bodegas are switching to organic and sustainable methods. Even the wineries BonAmb works with produce eco-wines. For me, that shows that health and pleasure go perfectly together — as long as you choose producers who care for both their grapes and the earth.

My advice

Buy a bunch of grapes from a local market instead of the supermarket sometime. Taste the difference — fuller, sweeter, more authentic. Combine that with a glass of wine at dinner, and you’ll have exactly the balance that makes the Mediterranean lifestyle so powerful: nourishing, social and sustainable.

This story is part of the The Sound Of The Costa Wine Special . All month long, the stories on CostaLifestyle are dedicated to wine — in collaboration with Grupo BonAmb.