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Frost damages Tuscany's prized vines

By Bruce Johnston

THIS year's harvest of one of the world's great wines, Brunello di Montalcino, has been thrown into jeopardy after a cold snap over Easter.

Temperatures suddenly dropped to -4C for seven hours between Saturday night and Sunday morning around Montalcino, south of Siena, causing serious damage to the vines. The drop was experienced across much of southern Tuscany, damaging vines used to make the prized Vino Nobile di Montepulciano.

Filippo Fanti, president of the Brunello di Montalcino Consortium, said the effects of the frost were "dramatic", adding: "We are expecting production to plummet as a result, perhaps by as much as 70 per cent."

Remo Grasso, vice-president of Banfi, the biggest of the Brunello producers, said: "This year we had a very nasty surprise inside our Easter egg." According to Banfi's agronomists, up to 40 per cent of its 1,760 acres of vines had been affected by the cold spell. The worst damage was done to the whites, since they had budded first, and to vines lower down the slopes.

Dante Cecchini, a spokesman for Banfi, said: "To have a fuller picture of the damage, we will have to wait about a fortnight, to see how the plants react. What everyone in Montalcino is hoping is that the Brunello vines react by putting out fewer bunches of grapes, which in effect would be a natural selection. This could lead to better grapes and a better wine, which would be some compensation for a drastic reduction in production."

-- Anonymous, April 17, 2001

Answers

That's why you make your own wine. You don't have to worry about the frost killing someone else's vines.

*she says sipping on a glass of maple syrup wine*

-- Anonymous, April 18, 2001