Report of the years

Despite it rained insistently in Winter, the average temperature was certainly above the typical one of this period. We got an early germination, a week earlier on average. Like Winter, Spring was a consistently rainy season, demanding us a particular care for the phytosanitary control of vineyards since the start of vegetative activities. The end of Spring and the initial phase of Summer (May, June and July) alternated between short warm periods and colder ones with precipitation by far above the average of this period.  All this determined important irregularities in the flowering.  Humidity and lower than average temperatures involved considerable investments, in the management of the vegetation and of the weeds. The phenological parable had a decline in all the stages about 7/8 days, compared to the regular course.  The late maturing brought with it extremely good requirements for the aromatic sector and the grapes’ freshness.  In general it was a particular expressive period for white grapes, with wine characterized by high fixed acidity levels and low pH values. Despite the high quality level of  white grapes, there were low gains, this was a good year for red grapes,

In Winter it has been raining a lot, and during the second part of the season it was very cold. Thanks to this, was  recorded a great  accumulation of water reserves in the soil. Spring was characterized by a climatic discontinuity. Moderately cool, with temperatures below the seasonal average and sudden lowering of temperature, which created a tardive germination. The end of the Spring  and the beginning of the Summer was characterized by a dry climate. In July the temperatures were very high, and the vineyards’ managing didn’t  bring any  great difficulty. By the end of July and the first half of August, the rain helped the regularity of physiological and photosynthetic processes  of the plant, especially after the last hot month. The second half of August was characterized by  regular temperatures, but the beginning of September , with a sudden rise of  temperature,  accelerated the maturation process the grapes. During the harvest time the phytosanitary condition of the grapes were pretty perfect, with higher than the average sugar levels and lower acidity.

this year started with a mild and dry Winter, and temperature a bit higher than the seasonal average. The low pressure was recorded only by the end of February and March. In Spring there was a rise of the temperature, with an early germination about 10 days. Soon after the germination there was a climatic discontinuity, with lower temperatures and heavy rainfall that impoverished the early germination. Spring was a consistently rainy season, far above the average of this period, causing in this way an increase in downy mildew, making the management of the vineyards harder than usual. The flowering there was between the end of May and the beginning of July, with an irregular course. In this case, a more protracted time of setting, that produced  loose bunches. Fortunately, Summer was a windy season,  with no extreme temperatures and a few rainstorms. Thanks to this, there was an excellent development of the vegetation.  The harvesting process was regular, but with a grapes maturation slower than average. September was characterized by rainfalls that determined heterogeneity in the final phase of the grapes maturation. The rainy Summer produced a particularly complicated year  for what concerns the phytosanitary condition. Cool temperatures facilitated  mostly white grapes, determining delicate and  cool wines, with high acidity and with intense and elegant olfactory profiles.

The first months of the year were very strict, with the average temperature certainly below the typical one of this period. Only in the end of Winter season  there was a rise of temperatures.  Spring was characterized by a low rate of rainfall, so there was an early germination , but unfortunately it wasn’t realised in a uniform way because of a significant temperature drop. In the end of April there was a stable weather  with mild temperatures and scarce rainfall. In this period there was the flowering and time of setting, they were correct and fast. Summer was characterized by absence of rain and constant high temperatures above the average, consequently there was the evapotranspiration of the vegetation more marked than average, all this lead to great stress conditions for the vines. This became extreme after a violent and spread fire that affected the Vesuvius, producing even higher temperatures. From the phytosanitary perspective, the dry weather helped the vines’ good health. This weather lasted for all the Summer and the harvest period. 2017 Summer will be remembered as the hottest Summer of the last 15 years. There was a slowdown of the vegetative activity  that lasted until the end of the harvest period. The excessive stressful condition impoverished the yields, reducing them  below about 50q per hectares.  On the whole, the harvest was calm, and the temperature changes at the beginning of September gave a great quality result to the grapes. The grapes were mature and perfect, rich of extractive substances, higher sugar levels, and lower acidity levels.

This year was characterized  by a mild Winter with heavy rainfall. Only at the end of Feburary was recorded a lowering of the temperatures. In the sequent months of March and April were recorded thermal levels below the average of the period and frequent rainfall. The germination process arrived a little late, compared to 2017. The frequent rainfalls in May produced virulent attacks from Downy mildew. In June there was a regular and faster flowering  compared to the previous month, with a fruit setting  that produced a raising of yield, compared to 2017. An unstable August  brought a maturation slowdown and a delay in the harvest.