Even in this strange month of July, which feels like May, it rains in the wet and also on the Veneto vineyards. In anticipation of the second meeting of the wine triptych , the traditional appointment to be held in the second half of August and which will give the first harvest forecasts for the 2023 vintage, the Veneto vines continue to be under attack!
The continuous rains that have followed one another since the end of May, if on the one hand made up for the water shortages of last year and the winter months, on the other hand favored the development of fungal diseases , downy mildew and powdery mildew above all, especially in organic plants . Added to this are the recent hailstorms which in some production areas seriously damaged the plants and bunches, with negative consequences on production, to be assessed in the coming weeks.
As if the problem of flavescence dorée wasn't enough, which in recent years has affected some of the main wine-growing areas of the region, which however was promptly well tackled by farmers under the guidance of the regional phytosanitary offices which coordinated the compulsory fight and the most appropriate according to the indications of the experts, in harmony with the main players in scientific research, from CREA Viticulture and enology of Conegliano to the University of Padua.
And to think that in this first part of the year , exports of Veneto wine had continued their growth trend, touching 630 million euros in the first three months of the year, 3% compared to the same period of the previous year.
And the 2022 vintage , despite the oddities of the climate, which put the Veneto vines to the test, with a torrid and largely dry summer, so much so as to require emergency irrigation in some areas, all in all it brought grapes to the cellar of excellent quality , which have given rise to excellent wines.
The 2022 Report on the Veneto agri-food situation , produced by the Veneto Agricoltura Economic Observatory and recently published on the company website, traced the economic trend of Veneto viticulture: the potential vineyard area has further increased, reaching 101,166 hectares ( 1, 3% compared to 2021), with that already in production growing to 94,708 hectares ( 0.8% ).
The definitive statistics of the 2022 Veneto harvest show a good increase in grape and wine production. In fact, the overall production of grapes harvested was approximately 15 million quintals , with a production growth of 7.2% compared to 2021. Almost 75% of this grape was produced in the DOC area, while that produced in IGT is equal to 22.3% of the total, with the remaining 2.8% represented by varietal grapes. The general yield of Veneto wine grapes is equal to 158.8 quintals per hectare ( 6.4% compared to 2021), with the DOCs reaching 142 quintals/ha ( 2.1% ), while the IGTs have reached 254 q/ha ( 26.1% ).
As regards the prices of Veneto grapes , there is an average quotation for the various types of 0.76 €/kg , with a variation of 0.7% compared to 2021. At the provincial level, Verona with an average price of 0.79 €/kg shows an increase of 10.2% , while Padua loses -9.9% (0.57 €/kg). With an average price of 0.91 €/kg , Treviso has an annual growth of 0.8% , thus maintaining the leadership of grape prices in Veneto.
The total wine production, in 2022, was around 11.9 million hectoliters , with an increase of 8.6% compared to the previous year. Of this, almost 9.2 million hectoliters of DOC wine are produced, with a share of the total wine produced in Veneto rising to 77.3% . White wine is close to 87% of the total DOC, mostly made up of Prosecco and Pinot Grigio. The share of IGT wines decreased to 19.8% of the total with white representing 57.7%. The remaining wine produced in the region is given by table wine (2.9% of the total).
Once again in 2022, Veneto was the leader in Italy for wine exports , given that it alone makes about 36% of the total exported by the national wine sector: in the last year, Veneto wine exports are close to 2.85 billion euro , with turnover growing by 13.4% compared to 2021.
The economic value generated by the sector is also growing: the value of production at basic prices of wine grapes is estimated by Istat at around 400 million euros, while the value of wine stands at around 957 million euros, for a total value of wine products of 1.36 billion euros , up 5.5% compared to 2021.
