HARVEST DIARY 2016
HARVEST DIARY 2016
HARVEST 2016
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FRANCO ALLEGRINI
Harvest 2016 began with some concern because of a difficult spring but ended with excellent results. Abundant rainfall in the month of May, in particular, obliged us to take stringent measures to protect the vines and safeguard their health; several downy mildew attacks affected vineyards in the plains, while vineyards in the upper hillsides easily endured the adverse weather conditions mainly due to breezier conditions and good soil drainage. From the second half of June a net improvement in the climate normalized rainfall and temperatures. In my opinion, the latter are most likely the key factor in the success of vintage 2016 since there were extraordinarily broad daily temperature ranges, without peaks in temperatures that could have interfered with the physiology of the ripening process. The difference in temperature between day and night improves the overall quality of the grapes by acting on the increase in sugar content, on the phenolic composition and by inhibiting the deterioration of acidic properties. These effects occurred in particular during veraison (in the middle 10 days of August), which is the crucial period for the increase in concentrations of anthocyanins in the skins and the accentuation of the aromatic profile of the different varietals. The harvest began on 9th September after a few weeks with temperatures slightly below average, promoting gradual ripening. It was carried out slowly with the express purpose of harvesting every variety and every parcel respecting the development and pace of nature right through to the end. The vintage 2016 grapes are healthy and ripe, with high sugar concentrations sustained by remarkable acidity, an indicator that enables us to presuppose wines with great freshness and longevity. The gentle process of appassimento got off to a great start thanks to the excellent weather in the post-harvest period that has also safeguarded the excellent health of the grapes.
Team Allegrini Franco, Paolo, Marco M., Giovanni, Luciano, Andrea, Alberto, Davide , Stefano, Marco T., Daniele, Federico, Bruno and seasonal workers
PHENOLOGICAL DIARY and OPERATIONS IN THE VINEYARD JULY
14
TH
bunch closure NOVEMBER
9
preparation of the soil and sowing
DECEMBER
30
TH
14
11
TH
NOVEMBER
TH
26
TH
MARCH
bleeding of the vines APRIL
5
TH
budding
15
TH
APRIL
shoot selection
MAY
14
TH
wire curtain training
27
TH
MAY
flowering JUNE
9
JULY
veraison
manuring
pruning
TH
TH
fruit set
30
TH
JUNE
bunch pre-closure
AUGUST
3
RD
adjusting the bunches
18 19 TH
SEPTEMBER TH
OCTOBER
harvest
HARVEST ALLEGRINI VALPOLICELLA 2016 TH
TH
18 SEPTEMBER - 19 OCTOBER
18 SEPTEMBER TH
VALPOLICELLA CLASSICA
We’re almost there... Throughout the Valpolicella Classica, there is an atmosphere of great expectation at the end of an intense and very rewarding year. We have all the preconditions for a great harvest! The weather during the summer season was particularly favourable, with clear, dry days that we had not seen for a long time, punctuated by just the right amount of rain when needed. Almost ‘textbook’ perfect! The last word goes to Franco Allegrini and Marco Marconi, who are visiting all the vineyards today to decide when and where to start harvesting, but most of all which varetal to harvest first. From the estates furthest east in Sant’Ambrogio di Valpolicella to those in San Pietro in Cariano, passing through Fumane and climbing up to Mazzurega, the grapes are exceptional. The development in the weather this year highlights the typical features of each of our autochthonous grape varieties. If the Corvina is ready to be harvested, Corvinone will instead need a few more weeks to achieve optimal phenolic ripeness and the required sugar content. To reach harvest time with perfectly healthy grapes is thrilling for those of us working in and experiencing vineyard life every day. We who work with nature, cherishing and respecting her and enjoying her fruits, cannot but think of those who just a few days ago were subjected to her strength and unpredictability. This thought has given rise to the decision to dedicate Harvest 2016 to the earthquake-struck town of Amatrice!
19 SEPTEMBER TH
MONTE DEI GALLI
Today, harvest 2016 begins officially at Monte dei Galli! Marco, who is in charge of the vineyards, brings his team together, which this year has been reinvigorated and enhanced by the presence of new people who have come from afar to take part in another exciting adventure. We also have the pleasure to have with us four young men, African asylum seekers, who are full of enthusiasm and readiness to learn! We welcome them immediately as part of the team, involving them in all our activities. The harvesters listen very carefully to Marco’s explanations and learn the correct method of selecting the grapes. We start with a parcel of vineyard where we have planted a selection of early-ripening clones of Corvina Veronese. These grapes with their intense colour will herald a harvest bursting with expectations!
21 SEPTEMBER ST
FUMANE DI VALPOLICELLA
A light rain today has given us a break, so we take the opportunity to have a look at the younger vineyards that are not yet ready to provide grapes. Allegrini has in fact acquired new land, including a small plot near Monte dei Galli and another 15 hectares (37 ac) in the upper hillsides, at 450 metres (1476 ft) a.s.l. It is a major investment, targeting the redevelopment of new areas that were once occupied by industrial plants. Marilisa and Franco have always been actively engaged in safeguarding and enhancing the territory: every new vineyard is inspired by the principles of sustainability and planted with great respect for the natural features of the hilly landscape. With the acquisition of these land parcels, Allegrini now has vineyards located in four of the five municipalities of the Valpolicella Classica. Every valley, every vineyard aspect has its own diversity and this enables us to make the most of all the different characteristics. We carefully observe the growth and development of the younger vines. The work of selecting the first bud and then the green pruning that follows, together with careful and targeted pest control using more and more natural methods, has allowed the vines to develop a healthy leaf canopy and consequently effective lignification of the canes.
23 SEPTEMBER RD
LA GROLA
Today we are harvesting at La Grola, one of the iconic vineyards in the Valpolicella Classica. On this magnificent hill, Giovanni Allegrini, Marilisa and Franco’s father, had recognized the features of an ideal terroir for growing Corvina: calcareous, well-drained soil, excellent exposure to sunlight and the heat of the sun and constant air circulation due to the breezes blowing in from Lake Garda and Monte Baldo. It was right here that Giovanni, exhibiting incredible foresight sustained by his love for the land, introduced a number of wine-growing innovations that would go on to revolutionize the history of the Valpolicella. We harvest the most mature bunches with the utmost care and place them in crates that safeguard the fruit from bruising and microfermentation during transit. These grapes will yield a great cru, now known throughout the world: La Grola! Marco explains that the quality of these grapes is the result of different operations carried out throughout the year. He tells us that for some time now we have been busy restoring our oldest vineyards via careful pruning to ensure the lymphatic flow in the plants. Indeed, during the cold winter months we try to ‘harm’ the vine as little as possible, performing only small incisions. Thanks to our pruners’ special training, they are able to perform skilled operations that allow us to ensure the perfect branching out of the structure of the vine and check its growth: a real credit to our company.
26 SEPTEMBER TH
LA GROLA
We continue harvesting at La Grola. We started with the first light of day. As soon as we arrive, Marco organizes the site, coordinating the harvesting and transportation activities as well as possible. Like all the Allegrini vineyards, La Grola is the result of choices that are both agronomic and aesthetic. In this vineyard-garden nature, expertly tamed by man, simultaneously becomes an open space to work in and a place of contemplation. Under a clear sky, surrounded by a crystalclear light that illuminates the colours of the vineyard, we continue to harvest Corvina grapes, which this year have given their very best. Thanks to a careful management of the leaf cover, we have managed to avoid scorching the skins, thereby ensuring even ripening of the berries. Towards sunset, we get some great news: our Amarone Classico has won the Gambero Rosso’s 3 Bicchieri award for the twentieth time!
28 SEPTEMBER TH
PALAZZO DELLA TORRE
This morning we are at Palazzo della Torre, the age-old vineyard where we cultivate the grapes for the production of the homonymous wine that has helped bring Allegrini worldwide fame. We arrive at dawn, taking advantage of the still-mild temperatures. We stop to observe the extraordinary vineyard that surrounds Villa Della Torre and admire the sinuous lines of the vine rows as well as the age-old marogne – dry-stone walls – that are a distinguishing feature of the rural architecture of the Valpolicella. We start by harvesting the grapes that will be set aside for partial drying – appassimento – in small crates. Palazzo della Torre, one of our historic cru wines, is produced with 30% dried grapes and 70% fresh grapes. The grapes we harvest today will be the first bunches to enter the drying facility called Terre di Fumane, where Federico, who is in charge of the drying centre, has already prepared everything for the arrival of the bunches, which will stay here for a few months. Marco shows us how to select the best grapes and reminds us of his mantra: “Sparse bunches, uniform colour, no botrytis!”. The grapes are then laid out in a single layer inside the containers, all with their stems pointing upwards, taking care that the bunches don’t overlap.
29 SEPTEMBER TH
PALAZZO DELLA TORRE
Something has changed over the last few days... The temperatures have gone down by around ten degrees and at least during the early hours of the day it is good to wrap up warm. Autumnal colours begin to show in the vineyards and on the trees in the hills. The process of leaf senescence has just started on some vines, with colours already veering towards yellow and red. Harvesting goes on at Palazzo della Torre, with collection in crates in full swing, and our hands become adept at handling these precious grapes. The grapes are exceptional! Since we began this harvest, wherever we look our expectations are confirmed: it will be a great vintage! The weather in the last few days has continued to be very positive, with warm, breezy days and extreme temperature changes between day and night. The ripening proceeds slowly and this is of great benefit, because we can organize our work well and harvest grapes that maintain their acid component, which is needed to balance the sugar content. Towards evening, Marco arrives and tells us that tomorrow part of the team will move to Lena, where the grapes have reached perfect sugar concentration. We will have to work quickly to prevent the ripening process from going too far!
30 SEPTEMBER TH
LENA / MONTE DEI GALLI
As planned, today we are harvesting at Lena, one of the Allegrini family’s oldest vineyards. This plot takes its name from the nearby stream, which collects the waters of Monte Pastello, Monte Solane and the plateau of Cavalo. In this vineyard, which is one of the few that are still trained with the pergola method, we grow the grapes that are used primarily for our Valpolicella Classico. Another team is still harvesting at Monte dei Galli. Here we are harvesting Oseleta, a vine that Allegrini uses in small percentages because it gives the wine aromatic intensity and spiciness. This low fertility variety has typically small-sized bunches. As we work, Marco’s thoughts go back to Walter Allegrini, Marilisa and Franco’s brother, who oversaw the organization and management of the vineyards. He tells us that it was right here at Monte dei Galli that their friendship blossomed and a great collaborative relationship developed.
1 OCTOBER ST
LA GROLA
We return to La Grola! Here the Corvina and Oseleta vines are Guyot-trained. As Marilisa always recalls, this was one of the major innovations introduced by her father Giovanni Allegrini in 1979 in the Valpolicella, and the majority of winemakers in the area now use it. As in all of our vineyards, we harvest manually and use carts to help us transport the crates. In this way, the tractors stay outside the rows to avoid compacting the soil too much. In this vineyard in particular – conceived as our laboratory for ideas – we have started on the path to sustainable viticulture aimed at eliminating chemical treatments that have the greatest impact on the environment. We have been free of weed killers now for five years, due to the combination of tillage and the use of ‘Attila’, a machine that can remove grass by means of high-pressure water jets. Franco Allegrini, who came to see us today, stopped to tell us how these lands have finally acquired new vitality. Because we have worked the soil under the rows, the ecosystem has revitalized spontaneously: the roots have regenerated, soil biodiversity has increased and earthworms have returned. Moreover, with the return of earthworms, an array of beautiful, colourful birds have repopulated the vineyards, already captured on camera by our friend Carmine. The Allegrini harvest is really a complete and formative experience!
3 OCTOBER RD
PALAZZO DELLA TORRE
At Palazzo Della Torre this morning, the sky is tinged with pastel shades, while a fresh, sharp breeze blows, reminding us of the imminent change in the season. We are among the rows of Rondinella, perhaps the easiest vine for beginners to recognize amongst other indigenous varietals since the leaf resembles parsley. As we work, we see how the sinuous lines of these rows are broken in places. This strategy was employed during planting to avoid excessive banks of vines, which would have visually flattened the contours of the hill. As Marco tells us, the soft and uniform green colour of these vines is a hallmark of Allegrini’s vineyards and an important indicator of vegetative equilibrium. Our fertilizers always aim to integrate only the microelements that we consider necessary for plant growth and that can improve the characteristics of the grapes. Instead, we eliminate nitrogen input, which is often responsible for excessive vigour. Here too we are harvesting vines that are Guyot-trained. This wire-trained system allows us to have high-density vineyards, compared with the pergola method, and to reduce the yield per vine. In the last few days, we have finished harvesting the grapes that will undergo appassimento for the production of Palazzo della Torre: the harvested grapes today and in the next few days will therefore be for vinification and will make up the 70% of the wine made immediately.
5 OCTOBER TH
VILLA CAVARENA
The harvest is going well, at a good, steady pace! Today we begin harvesting the first grapes from our upper hillside vineyards. We are at Villa Cavarena, at an altitude of 520 metres (1706 ft) a.s.l. This place is truly unique. The rows stand on the south-facing side of the hill and on imposing terraces, which give the vineyard the appearance of a majestic open-air theatre with a large auditorium. This place is teeming with contrasts: there is an avenue of pine trees down below that welcomes us as soon as we come in, a sign that the climate remains mild even at these altitudes. Higher up, we find a windbreak made up of a hedge of hornbeams built by Franco Allegrini to protect the vines from the mighty force of the north winds that blow across the top of this hill. Here there are remarkable similarities with La Grola: both vineyards tower over the countryside surrounding them, they both enjoy a breath-taking view and above all, they share the same type of soil. Given the high elevation here, the grapes’ phenological phases are usually behind those of the lower vineyards. For example, flowering took place here on 7th June, two weeks later than on the hill of Monte dei Galli. We begin to pick Corvina in crates. We start from the lowest marogne –traditional drystone walls – where the grapes have reached the right Babo measurement for partial drying. Babo is a unit of measure used to determine the sugar content of the must and is named after the Austrian oenologist August Wilhelm von Babo. Great expectations for tomorrow ...we will be moving to Fieramonte!
6 OCTOBER TH
FIERAMONTE
And after Villa Cavarena... Fieramonte! The grapes have finally reached the optimum degree of maturity even at this altitude. We are 420 metres (1378 ft) a.s.l. and the vineyard is located on the road that goes from Palazzo della Torre up to Mazzurega. Fieramonte is a wonderful ‘balcony’ overlooking the Valpolicella Classica: from here one can see the three parallel valleys that cross it; the valleys of Fumane, Marano and Negrar and to the south, the beautiful city of Verona. We begin to place the crates for drying on the carts and in pairs begin harvesting these very healthy, looselypacked bunches, taking care not to bruise them. Marco has explained how to handle the grapes, picking them up by the stem without touching the berries: sometimes just touching them damages the skin and ruins the fruit, which must arrive intact at the drying facility. “Ci gà le mane moie, via a casa...!” This old saying reminds us that a good harvester must always have dry hands at the end of the day. The colour of the berries looks like ink and against the light one can see the shades of purple and red. Franco Allegrini joins us to ensure that everything goes according to plan. For him, the harvest at Fieramonte is a really important and delicate moment: the best bunches of Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella and Oseleta will be used to produce Amarone Classico Riserva Fieramonte. This great wine, the only Riserva produced by the Company, represents the past and the future of Allegrini, via a present that renews a tradition. Produced from 1976 to 1985, even then it was distinguished by the lengthy ageing periods and established what today are considered the distinctive notes of Amarone. This vineyard was overhauled, starting in 2000, with the varietal base changing to Corvina and Corvinone, the main grape varieties used in our Amarone. Franco announces that the new Fieramonte will be a sumptuous and noble wine! We work enthusiastically all day and feel happy to be part of such an important project. As time goes by, the team is more and more united and the ‘younger’ members have already acquired a certain dexterity. Marco is really in good hands!
8 OCTOBER TH
TERRE DI FUMANE
Some of us working today at Fieramonte and Villa Cavarena go down with the tractor drivers to Terre di Fumane, the most important drying facility in the Valpolicella, to assist in loading and unloading the crates. The pace of work, especially during this period, is quite hectic and it is important to speed up the orderly arrangement of the crates in the various rooms in the drying centre and at the same time facilitate the flow of trucks and tractors. Completed in 1998 following close collaboration between Professor Roberto Ferrarini and Franco Allegrini, Terre di Fumane is a facility shared by other local producers. Federico, who is in charge of the centre explains – while coordinating the unloading operations – that the structure occupies an area of about 2,800 square metres (30,139 sq. ft) and is able to hold up to 4,000 pallets, amounting to a total of about 1,000,000 kg of grapes! The strength of this project lies in its simplicity: large rooms, which allow different batches of grapes to be easily organized, cutting-edge technology to monitor key environmental variables crucial for the drying process (temperature and humidity) and large windows along the perimeter walls. In addition, the centre was built at the beginning of the valley of Fumane to optimize the harnessing of natural air currents from the north: air circulation is in fact a key factor in the drying process, as it helps to keep the rooms dry and to ward off the risk of mould.
10 OCTOBER TH
LA GROLA
Today we will be completing the harvest at La Grola. Our harvest is carried out in steps, taking into account the sugar content, altitude and earliness of the different clones. Besides having eliminated weed killers, during the ripening period we also use a natural method to control insects such as vine moths. In particular, we use pheromone diffusers positioned along the rows which confuse the males of this species during mating. This technique is referred to as ‘sexual confusion’. While we transport the crates full of grapes back and forth, we realize that the rows are interrupted at two points. Marco tells us that this device is another of Giovanni Allegrini’s great insights, aimed at facilitating air circulation in the centre of the vineyard. These corridors, which create a three-way division of the plot, do indeed allow air to be channelled between the rows, preventing stagnant humidity that is so potentially dangerous for fungal infections.
11 OCTOBER TH
FIERAMONTE
We go back to Fumane and then up again to Fieramonte. Today we will be harvesting Corvinone, a medium-late variety, which gives its best at high altitudes and in areas with good exposure to the sun’s rays. Fieramonte, with its privileged exposure, is the ideal terroir for the cultivation of this variety, particularly prized by the Allegrini family. Franco tells us that thanks to genetic studies, Corvinone has been recognized as a variety in its own right since the 1990s, rather than a clone of Corvina. Marco can’t stop tasting these grapes, with their intense flavour and brilliant inky colour. He’s proud of the work done and grateful to all his collaborators. He says they have been working for years to achieve a perfect skin that is elastic and crisp. If elasticity is a guarantee of the success of the drying process, crispness is sought to support the lengthy maceration of the grapes in the subsequent phase of vinification. Here in the early hours, the morning sun looks you straight in the face and warms you with its rays, despite the stinging breeze that can always be felt in this second week of October. Compared to last year, the average temperatures are about 7-8 degrees lower. This has been a positive factor for the grapes, enabling gradual ripening and thereby laying the foundations for what we believe will be a memorable vintage. Between one business trip and the next, Marilisa finds the time to join us for a few hours. She thanks us all for the work we are doing and tells us about the air of excited anticipation before the launch of Amarone Classico Riserva Fieramonte. She can’t wait to present it to the world!
12 OCTOBER TH
VILLA CAVARENA
At first light, a part of the team arrives at Villa Cavarena. On this beautiful sunny day, we use 5-kg crates to harvest our wonderful Corvinone, which we will use for our Amarone Classico and for Recioto Giovanni Allegrini. Compared to Corvina, veraison in this variety has gone on for longer, moving the ripening forward by a few weeks. The cool temperatures in late September and the altitude subsequently positively enhanced the phenolic component in the berries. We pick the grapes on the middle terraces. In this part of the vineyard, the harvest is particularly challenging because of the difference in height between one row and the next created by the dry-stone walls. However, we do not get discouraged and continue at full speed, gratified by the stunning landscape. Marco reminds us that in the case of grapes to be set aside for drying, it is good to remove the lower tip, the part where the sugar content is lower. It is in the ‘rece’, that is, the upper part, and in the middle portion, that we have the best berries, since they are the ones that benefit from the best exposure. At lunchtime, we stay on the estate right next to the Villa that lends its name to the vineyard. In the 18th century, this stately home was the residence of the abbot Bartolomeo Lorenzi, who wrote ‘Della coltivazione de’ monti’ here, a botanical work dedicated to Archduke Ferdinand of Austria. At Villa Cavarena, just like at Palazzo Della Torre, art and nature come together, in a duet between past and present. In the meantime, we can see Fieramonte, where another team is harvesting.
17 OCTOBER TH
LA POJA
After a few rainy days, during which we suspended the harvest, thereby also recovering a bit of energy for the grand finale, we again go up the hill of La Grola and arrive at La Poja in Sant’Ambrogio di Valpolicella. There is something magical about this place: very white stones, tall, towering cypresses, olive trees and a breath taking landscape all round. As Luigi Brozzoni said during a tasting, “when you climb up to La Poja, you feel like you’ve arrived on top of a natural temple”. The silence in this place creates an almost sacred atmosphere, and we have the privilege this year to harvest a grape that seems to have achieved perfection. It has a black and shiny inky colour that stands out against the white of the limestone rocks that make up the soil. It was right here that Giovanni Allegrini crowned Corvina Veronese the queen of the Valpolicella, bringing it up to this hill and deciding to vinify it on its own: a great vision and an absolutely pioneering idea, especially considering that production Regulations today allow the use of up to 95% of this variety to make Amarone, whereas then no more than 70% was allowed. On tasting, the grapes are really unique! The cool temperatures and long daylight hours in the first two weeks of October appear to have made a difference. This Corvina, called Corvina ‘gentile’ because of its smaller berries, has a juicy pulp and an intense colour. In the vineyard, the rows are well spaced and we can work with relative ease. Here too we harvest in crates to protect this precious fruit from bruising. It is essential that the full range of aromas remains intact. We are confident that vintage 2016 of La Poja will be truly memorable!
18 OCTOBER TH
VILLA CAVARENA / LA POJA
Today the team is split between Villa Cavarena and La Poja. These two vineyards share the same type of limestone soil. What differentiates them significantly is their specific microclimate. At Villa Cavarena, the geographical location, altitude (520 m/1706 ft a.s.l.), large temperature fluctuations between day and night and the southern exposure create the conditions for the cultivation of grapes that are well suited to the drying process. In the afternoon, Marco leaves Mazzurega in his grey pick-up to go to S. Ambrogio di Valpolicella to join the team that is harvesting at La Poja. The original features of this vineyard, its great hilltop location, very white soil and the beneficial influence of nearby Lake Garda yield a Corvina that is able to express itself in complete independence and take an alternative path to appassimento. To help us to understand better, Marco invites us to taste a bunch of these grapes and another bunch picked at Villa Cavarena. “If Corvinone is the king of appassimento, Corvina is the queen of our cru wines” ... He pauses, laughs, and then concludes: “... and this year, lads, this Corvina is amazing”.
19 OCTOBER TH
LA POJA
It is the last day of the harvest, and we finish with a final ascent to La Poja. We have set up an irrigation system that from this year on, will allow us to intervene in case of emergency in the future. Recent changes in climate, in fact, mean that we will need to be ready to deal with critical situations. The new irrigation will help us, in particular, during the driest years to protect both the vines and the grapes. The targeted fertilizer treatments that Marco and his team carry out during the year allow the plants to maintain the right equilibrium. Man and the vine counterbalance each other by working and living together: where one falls short, the other intervenes and vice versa. Our motto is to observe the vine continuously... “If only it could talk...” says Franco, jokingly, when he comes to visit us in the vineyards. So we come to the end of this extraordinary adventure. Soon the vines will prepare themselves to face the winter: without any bunches, they will be free to conclude their growing cycle and draw the sap back into the woody parts as a reserve for next season. In a few weeks, their leaves will fall and from the month of November, the vines will begin their well-deserved rest. After laying the last bunches in the crates, we say goodbye and go home, tired but proud to have played our part and happy to have taken part in such an intense human experience. Marco thanks each of us and gives us a good bottle of wine to share with our nearest and dearest. Then, smiling he says “Siate sempre Allegrini!”, playing on the association between Allegrini and allegro – meaning cheerful or merry – to wish us lifelong good cheer.
”
Now let me make a confession: you all know that I travel all over the world to talk about and sell wine and, for the work I do and perhaps the impassioned enthusiasm I put into it, some have called me, ‘la Signora dell’Amarone’. However, I have to admit that when this Signora is tired and a bit down, when her optimism does not suffice to overcome all the difficulties, and when the interplay of human relations is not always the fun that many suppose, this Signora has her own special way to re-energize herself. I think of my vineyards in the Valpolicella, I immerse myself in its colours, I see myself as a young girl, harvesting with my father; the harvest is like a dream, or rather, a gentle therapy that helps me to overcome the obstacles and anxieties of marketing, the fear of not coming home with the results I expected. The harvest in my native land vanquishes everything. This is why Marco Marconi’s dialect is pleasing to me, and familiar. “Ci gà le mane moie, via a casa! Grapolo spargolo, niente botrite”. (Whoever has wet hands, off home you go! Sparse bunches, no botrytis). And this explains why the grapes at Fieramonte, finally earmarked to recreate our wonderful Amarone Riserva that has always been close to my heart, triggers in me a crescendo of emotions. This, again, is why I feel proud that Allegrini, delicately, and almost in defiance of these times of apparent ‘outrage’, has taken on four young African asylum seekers as harvesters. Again, this is why I feel so happy to hear that, due to our firm commitment to sustainable agriculture, the ecosystem at La Grola has spontaneously reactivated: earthworms have returned and, with them, various species of beautiful, colourful birds have begun flying over our vineyards again. Thank you so much for all your hard work, for these Diaries, and for this new vintage. 2016 is set to be an extraordinary vintage and will console the world of all its contradictions... Marilisa Allegrini
HARVEST DIARY 2016
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