After analyzing 1,400 plots in total, distributed in different Italian regions, Slovenia, Cyprus and Macedonia, the Perleuve team selected 62 vineyards which in 2023 achieved very high ratings on the 9 parameters monitored and evaluated by the Bigot Index , developed in over twenty years of field research, in Italy and internationally. These indicators, capable of specifically influencing the characteristics of the wine, are: production, leaf surface, relationship between leaves and production, health of the grapes, type of bunch, water stress, vigour, biodiversity and microorganisms and age of the vineyard.
“The Bigot Index confirms itself as an excellent tool for identifying vineyards with a distinctive natural vocation – comments Giovanni Bigot –. It is interesting to note how some vineyards are reconfirmed over the years , thus outlining the wine-growing areas that in the future we could define, in the French style, crus ".
The optimal combination of the 9 agronomic factors is rare, so much so that only 5% of the vineyards examined last year managed to obtain a score equal to or higher than 90 points, also due to the difficult weather conditions that affected the entire territory Italian and the Mediterranean, testing the ability of winemakers to maintain high quality standards. “Even in difficult years, each wine-growing region has suitable areas that the Bigot Index is able to highlight – continues Bigot –. Vineyards capable of standing out testify to the ability of the human being, of the farmer, to adapt in finding agronomic solutions and producing great wines despite adversity".
In the ranking we find six vineyards, all vinified as single vineyards, also awarded in 2022: the Nebbiolo La Rosa vineyard of Casa E. Mirafiore (from which Langhe Nebbiolo DOC was born), the Pignolo Rosazzo vineyard of Le Vigne di Zamò ( Pignolo Rosazzo DOC) , Marjan Simčič's Merlot Trobno vineyard ( Merlot Opoka Trobno Cru), Tenuta del Cabreo's Sangiovese Colombole ( Il Borgo Toscana IGT), and Rainoldi's Nebbiolo Apostoli ( Vigna Degli Apostoli Sassella DOCG).
Overall, in 2023, 44 companies boast vineyards with scores equal to or higher than 90 points, almost double compared to the 25 of the previous year. Among these, the Radikon and Tikveš companies stand out as the most awarded, with four vineyards each with high quality potential.
