The extreme weather conditions over the course of 2022 put every Chianti agronomist to the test: the drought during the summer and scattered hailstorms that affected some vineyards in early July, conditioned the normal physiological process of the plants and risked compromising the harvest. Our Technical Director, Massimiliano Biagi, explains: “Between late July and early August the production vineyards experienced water stress, namely in areas characterized by especially stony soils where roots cannot penetrate deep enough in search of water. Temperatures in the vineyards stayed high for an extraordinary length of time – starting in May with temperatures above 30º C through July with peaks of 38-40º C – which, combined with absence of significant rain occurrences for a long stretch of time, have led the vines to reduce their vital functions. Those were weeks of great uncertainty.”

Special measures were put in place for the new vineyards which were manually irrigated every 10-15 days, using a rain water reservoir. In a recent interview with the “Washington Post” on the issue of climate change, Biagi concluded that in the future it will no longer be possible to exclusively rely on nature to get the water that the vines need. At Brolio, one of the most interesting options being considered to address the issue is the creation of a reservoir that collects rainwater.

Fortunately, the vine is a resilient plant and the mid-August rains have rebalanced the physiological condition of the vineyards, allowing the harvest of healthy and well-ripened grapes. As always, harvest started with the Chardonnay white berried grapes on August 17, it was then followed by the Trebbiano early-ripening red berried varieties, and finally the Sangiovese harvest from September 15 through the first ten days of October. Grape selection was carefully considered to quickly ensure highly satisfactory oenological results in the cellar that, despite the long weeks with bated breath, allow us to forecast high quality wines.