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In semi-arid climate areas, where often pomegranate trees are cultivated, irrigation management is a powerful tool to manipulate tree water status and performance and fruit composition. A field irrigation trial was conducted over four seasons in a 'Mollar de Elche' pomegranate orchard in southeastern Spain. This paper will focus on the main positive effects that deficit irrigation had on fruit quality. Higher total soluble solids content in the juice and more reddish fruit peel coloration were observed at harvest and during cold storage at 5 degrees C and 90-95% RH on pomegranates from deficit irrigation applied continuously during the entire growing season or only during ripening. On the other hand, higher juice anthocyanin content was obtained in fruit submitted to water restrictions during the linear phase of fruit growth. Timing of water stress is then an important factor to take into account for anthocyanin accumulation in skin and aril tissues. The results also suggest that colour formation in the peel and internal tissues have different metabolic pathways, opening up new research lines. In addition, fruit from well watered trees showed greater susceptibility to physiological disorders manifested after cold storage as peel pitting, blemishes and sinking, and to weight loss with respect to deficit irrigation samples. Weight loss increased with storage time and fruit from trees submitted to continuous deficit irrigation or water withholding only during ripening showed lower weight loss compared to the control treatment. Deficit irrigation, depending on the phenological period when water shortage is applied, can be used as a field practice to control fruit ripening timing, enhance pomegranate fruit composition and improve fruit postharvest performance.