On Sunday afternoon, in the courtyard of the Municipality of Isera, the winners of the 19th edition of La Vigna Excellent were announced, a competition born in 2001 with the aim of rewarding the care of the winemakers in the vineyard and their daily work that contribute so strongly to characterize the vineyard landscape of Vallagarina.
And there were 46 plots , for a total of 250 thousand square meters of vineyards , under the scrutiny of the expert jury, chaired by Professor Attilio Scienza , Professor of Viticulture at the Faculty of Agriculture of the University of Milan, and composed of Marco Stefanini , Duilio Porro and Bruno Mattè , technicians of the Edmund Mach Foundation - Agricultural Institute of San Michele all'Adige, Enzo Merz , journalist and Grand Master of the Confraternity of the Vine and Wine of Trento, Nereo Pederzolli , journalist, Carlo Rossi who, in 2001, held baptism of the competition as Mayor of Isera, and Franco Nicolodi , regional coordinator and director of the Italian Association of Wine Cities, for an evaluation from both a technical and aesthetic point of view .
Of the 31 farmers in competition , Tullio Parisi excelled, with his vineyard of 0.73 hectares with a simple pergola located in the municipality of Isera, in the locality of Marano Volpera, awarded for intelligent management, which saw operations carried out to perfection with a particularity: the topping carried out in the harvest period which allowed to reach an optimal vegetative-productive balance not found in other vineyards, with cutting of the bunch, spreading and leafing carried out in an absolutely painstaking way.
In second place, Federico Rosina , whose vineyard of 0.65 hectares located in the locality of Corsi, in the municipality of Isera, was recognized as having a perfect vegetative balance even more difficult to obtain on the guyot system used, especially with a vigorous growth habit such as that of Marzemino for which this system, in fact, is not yet widespread.
Third place for the young Giovanni Frapporti , who in his vineyard of 0.8 hectares in the locality of Brom, municipality of Isera, demonstrated impeccable agronomic management, with all the care operations carried out in a workmanlike manner from the beginning to the end of the year. The only note that did not allow him to rise further in the ranking was a slight uneven distribution of the grapes in the vineyard but certainly the prize could be the stimulus for future years.
Special mention , then, for Annalisa Sosi , for her double pergola vineyard in the center of the town of Isera which well expresses the importance of defending biodiversity.
The special award named after Francesco Graziola was instead awarded to Paolo Benvenuti , historical Director of the Città del Vino Association who died at the beginning of the year, and delivered to the President Floriano Zambon, who recalled his foresight and passion, as well as his strong proximity to the city del Vino di Isera, to which he was also linked as a member of the jury.
During the afternoon there were several interventions, starting with that of the new Mayor Graziano Luzzi , who wanted to thank the winegrowers, the jury and the previous administration, confirming the desire to carry on this important initiative which will turn twenty in 2021.
And, given that, as the conductor Walter Nicoletti recalled, the aim of the award is also to confront and identify work paths, improvement objectives, the journalist Nereo Pederzolli offered a critical thought on the theme of Marzemino, hoping for a an increase in cultivated hectares, especially in the areas of strong identity of the Ziresi and Isera, and a collective commitment to defend their peculiarities.
Also this year, the day was an opportunity to take stock of the wine-growing season that has just passed thanks to the technical analysis by Bruno Mattè who first of all recalled how farmers have proved efficient in carrying out agronomic operations despite the difficulties of the year. , rather difficult, especially in its final part, even if not so far from the last few years. In general, explains the FEM technician, the harvest went well for the Marzemino because after the rains of September 20, the weather improved, allowing it to reach the usual standards. During the year - averaging the data from Volano, which is later, and from Isera, which is earlier - there was a week earlier in the opening of the buds compared to last year (which rise to 15/20 days if the comparison with the nineties, due to the generally milder months of February and March), a bud break not too generous (-4% on 2019 even if in line with the last few years); and an advance of 12 days with respect to the 2-3 leaves formed, which led to a risk of spring frosts, which in fact narrowly escaped Isera. The fertility of the clusters was very good, with more than one cluster per shoot, despite the fact that Marzemino is not a generous variety from this point of view, and flowering saw an advance of 15 days at the beginning of the season, reduced, if not canceled. , due to the colder weather in the months of May, June and July. The last bunches were in fact harvested in line with previous years. No great difficulties were recorded in terms of powdery mildew, given the very rainy year, while downy mildew saw a year of medium pressure that required frequent but light interventions. To avoid rot, the harvest was anticipated and concentrated. Finally, great attention is paid to the golden flavescence, which has become stronger from 2015 onwards, also due to the increasingly present vector.
Still technical notes with Marco Stefanini , who illustrated a presentation dedicated to the contribution that innovation can give to the sustainability of the vineyard , with a particular focus on the opportunities offered by resistant vines to obtain crossings with native vines that can give life to more varieties able to combat vine diseases, recalling those recently registered in the National Register by the Mach Foundation, or Charvir which, as the name suggests, takes up the term Chardonnay and, in fact, was born as a sparkling wine base; Valnosia, Nosiola x Bianca; Ter, amtos and Nermantis, both Teroldego x Merzling.
The conclusions, as usual, were entrusted to Attilio Scienza , who concentrated his speech on the antithesis that is traditionally found between humanistic and scientific culture . While both pursue the truth, in fact, they have different characteristics: the scientific is objective, and requires verification, the humanistic is subjective and is extraneous to the concept of progress. Although the opposition is still very strong today, Scienza recalls how it is essential to rely on both to have a good wine today and how the La Vigna Excellent award is an opportunity to talk about it: the jury does not evaluate only the qualitative and quantitative parameters of the vineyard but also its aesthetic aspect, its elegance, its shape, its balance in the landscape. And the research, left to itself, does not help progress, but needs to be disseminated and communicated through disseminators and journalists able to explain its objectives and results, as is possible at this event.
Finally, satisfaction for the program of events related to the competition, which saw the city of Isera animated by three days of initiatives , including tastings, workshops, themed dinners, and the brand new “agribus” between the fractions of Isera which was sold out . " Given the current health situation to which the bad weather day on Sunday has been added, we did not expect such a great success - commented Sergio Valentini, Managing Director for Tourism of the Municipality of Isera - not only in terms of presence, but also of participation and interest of the public who even during the agribus experience showed great attention and curiosity towards what producers are already doing to enhance Marzemino and towards future projects. A result that encourages us to get to work immediately for the 2021 edition, which will be number twenty: an important milestone that certainly fills the whole community with pride and which must be celebrated properly ".
"The Excellent Vineyard ... and it is immediately Isera" was organized by the Municipality of Isera, City of Wine, with the support of Trentino Marketing, the coordination of the Trentino Wine and Flavors Route as part of the promotion of wine events provincials called #trentinowinefest and the collaboration of APT Rovereto and Vallagarina.
