We are continuing to follow the progression of the grape harvest in Italy.
For sparkling winemakers (who tend to pick earlier than most), the picking has already begun.
For growers in red wine country, harvest won’t start for another two months in some places.
Here’s an update from a top Barolo grape grower on damage caused during the late July hailstorms there and their impact on the vintage.
There have been three hailstorms in Barolo this summer. And the last two came two days apart, with the very last one on July 31.
The hailstorms like the ones that struck the area do not generally create too many problems because they make for a sort of “natural” dropping of fruit. They damaged roughly 10-15 percent of the fruit. But the berries were still very hard even though they were already well formed and in the process of growing.
When hail strikes, the berries are detached from the bunch and either dry out or fall off by themselves…