The 2021 harvest is announced late in all the wine-growing areas of Veneto, including the vast area of Prosecco DOC , which affects five Venetian provinces (in practice all with the exception of Verona and Rovigo) and the whole of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Like the grapes of the other Veneto vines, Glera (Prosecco) also pays a pledge for the bizarre climatic trend that has characterized this vintage. And it is precisely for this delay in ripening of the grapes that the "historic" meeting (47th edition) of Veneto Agricoltura , with the Region , Arpav , Avepa and Crea-VE , dedicated to the forecast of the harvest in Veneto , in the main Italian wine regions , in France and Spain , it will take place on August 31st (9:30 am on the Zoom platform; registration here: https://previsioni2021.eventbrite.it) instead of at the beginning of the month as we had become accustomed to in recent years (in 2020 it was held on August 6).
"The grapes of the Prosecco DOC area both Veneto and Friuli - underlines Andrea Battistella of the Consorzio di Tutela - at this moment are in full veraison phase (the berries begin to ripen and take color); for the varieties destined for blending, such as Pinot and Chardonnay , veraison is at an advanced stage. It is important to remember - continues Battistella - that this year our winemakers have shown all their skill and professionalism , facing in the best way a very complicated campaign, which began with frosts in April, continued with the heavy hailstorms that affected some areas and with the alternation of dry and rainy periods ".
The fact is that today the health status of the grapes in the large Prosecco DOC area is absolutely satisfactory . The operators have been able to contain the main plant diseases of the grapevine, even if - as the technicians of the Protection Consortium note - this year, as in 2020, some critical issues that concern the operators a little, namely the esca disease and even more the flavescence dorée .
"From a quantitative point of view - concludes Battistella - yields are estimated for this year lower than the ceilings indicated in the specification. And it is precisely for this reason that, after consulting the offices in charge of the Veneto Region, the Friuli-Venezia Giulia Region and the trade organizations , suitable measures will be activated (temporary drawing and storage) to deal with the shortage of grapes for Prosecco DOC and consequently satisfy the demand of the markets in the coming months ".
Finally, as regards the quality of the grapes destined to become Prosecco 2021, the operators underline that it is still early to make proclamations, as everything will be decided during the long and delicate ripening phase, but the conditions are good, in particular for the areas that remained free from hailstorms. All that remains is to cross your fingers.
