The Barbera d'Asti and Vini del Monferrato Consortium presented the final results of AGEBA, a study focused on the recovery and valorisation of the ancient germplasm of the Barbera variety for adaptation to climate change

The project began in May 2022 and was continued throughout the 2023 viticultural campaign, laying the foundations to be able to deepen and develop the results obtained in the future.

The investigation consists in addressing climate change from a genetic point of view, recovering and evaluating the intravarietal variability of the Barbera vine to subsequently plan the propagation of ancient Barbera strains belonging to the period before clonal selection or before the 1970s last, to test their behavior in relation to climate change.
It is assumed that these strains are bearers of useful characteristics to resist extreme climatic phenomena, increased temperatures, and reduced rainfall and are free from the main virosis and flavescence dorée/black wood and therefore ideal for creating new clones for Barbera.
Alongside this main project, a second experimental line has been outlined. It involves two types of interventions in existing Barbera vineyards:

1- Late pruning to postpone the budding phase and avoid damage caused by the increasingly frequent spring frosts.

2 - Experimentation of foliar treatments in the Barbera vineyard with biostimulants based on hydrolysates in moments of greatest thermal and water stress on the plant, in order to mitigate the negative effects of stress on the plant.

In both cases, the effects that these treatments have on the phenology and vegetative-productive aspects of the vine and on the quality of the wine produced will be studied.

The results of the studies have allowed us to obtain a better genetic knowledge of the Barbera vine, at the same time the need to extend the experimentation time to obtain scientifically relevant results was highlighted. In the first case, a period of time between 5 and 7 years has been identified so that an experimental vineyard can be propagated and created by evaluating its production performance and in the second case a period of at least 3 years is considered necessary.

THE BARBERA D'ASTI AND MONFERRATO WINES CONSORTIUM

The Barbera d'Asti and Vini del Monferrato Consortium, founded in 1946, has the task of protecting and promoting its denominations to guarantee their diffusion and their image on national and international markets, also through specific distinctive brands. Currently the Consortium has more than 400 member companies and 13 protected names