Vendemmia starts early this year

The vendemmia – the grape picking harvest – started early this year with very mixed results reported around the valley.  Some growers are talking about a disastrous year for wine production due to virus and fungus destroying a high percentage of their grapes. Others are instead biding their time and leaving the grapes to ripen on the vines and are talking in quiet tones of the very good possibility of finally a good crop this year after last year’s poor harvest.

One of the vineyards this morning just outside Barga managed to complete their vendemmia, which would normally take almost a day to pick, in a couple of hours and only using one fifth of the capacity of the barrels and containers in their cantina.

For some it is going to be a very dry drinking season this year

All eyes are on the weather forecast for the next week or so as a cold weather front moves into the area leaving at risk the grapes still unpicked in certain exposed vineyards.

[View with PicLens]

The Vendemmia 2007 can be seen here and images documenting the complete process of picking the grapes and wine and grappa production during the vendemmia  by the award winning barganews photographer, O ‘Connor can be seen here