MONTEFORTE D’ALPONE (Province of Verona): The winter was mild. The vines started budding early. The springtime was rainy and the summer was cool with rain. At the beginning of September the weather changed completely. It was dry, sunny and warm throughout September and October and this was very positive for the vines.

Claudio Gini – Azienda Agricola Gini (Soave Classico DOC, Recioto di Soave DOCG, Veneto IGT Pinot Nero, Veneto IGT Sauvignon, Monti Lessini Bianco DOC, Spumante VSQ):”..we started picking the early ripening varieties, such as Chardonnay, Sauvignon and Pinot Nero, after mid September. The vineyards stand at 400-500 meters so that the quality of the grapes and of the wines was good. Then we stopped picking. The good weather helped us with airy and sunny days, with a very low humidity. The nights were also nice and cool. We then started picking Garganega on the 6/7th of October. At the beginning of October the Garganega grapes changed completely, the clusters were beautiful with a lovely colour. We finished the harvest on the 20th of October (we usually finish around the end of October). The clusters were particularly beautiful in the old vineyards of the crus. We are happy with the result. The wines are still fermenting so that it is still early to say so, but we think that 2014 can be considered a great vintage for Soave Classico. The conformation of the Garganega clusters, being dispersed and with berries with a resistant skin, helped us together with the soil of the hills of Monforte. The topsoil is volcanic resting on rock so that the drainage is excellent..The quality of the grapes drying in the winery of Campiano, for the production of Amarone and of Valpolicella, is good. We picked the grapes for the production of Valpolicella at the end of September, beginning of October. Starting from the 2014 vintage we are certified organic (this applies to the whole wine production of Gini). The grape yield was normal, slightly lower this year…”

COSTEGGIOLA-SOAVE (Province of Verona): The summer was cool with rains. The weather was good and dry during September and October.

Gaetano Tamellini owner of Azienda Agricola Tamellini (Soave DOC, Soave Classico DOC, Spumante VSQ): “..we harvested from the 14th of September till the 20th of October. The grapes were beautiful, Paolo Caciorgna, our oenologist, said that the clusters were even better than in 2013!….The Garganega grapes benefited very much of the good weather in September and in October so that the ripening was excellent. We carefully selected the grapes in the vineyards. …The grape yield in 2014 was lower…The wines are fresh, with good aromatics…We are very satisfied.. ”

NEGRAR (Province of Verona): The winter was mild. The springtime was warm and a bit rainy. The summer was cool with rains. The weather, starting from the 6th-7th of September, was good throughout September and October. At the end of October the weather got colder and this is excellent for the grapes that are drying.

Antonio Mazzi – Azienda Agricola Mazzi (Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOC, Recioto della Valpolicella Classico DOC, Valpolicella Classico Superiore DOC): “…we started picking later than usual on the 25th of September (we normally start harvesting on the 20th-21st of September). We finished around mid October (a week later than usual). This year the harvest was slower as we had to go through the vineyards a few times. The clusters for the production of Amarone and for the Valpolicella Classico Superiore Vigneto Poiega were ripe and flawless. For this vintage the regulation for the production of Amarone established that only 35% of the total grape production of each estate can be dried (in previous vintages it was 50%). Consequently in 2014 there will be more production of Valpolicella and less production of Amarone. The grapes for the production of Valpolicella remained longer on the vines (we picked the grapes for Amarone first) and benefited from the good weather. We just racked off the wine for Valpolicella: the quality is good and so are the aromatics….. ”

CUSTOZA (District of Sommacampagna – Province of Verona) – MARCELLISE (Province of Verona) – MONZAMBANO (Province of Mantova): The winter was mild and rainy. The vegetative cycle of the vines started early. The springtime and the summer were rainy and cool. This made the vegetative cycle of the vines longer. Luckily the weather during the month of September was good which was positive for late ripening varieties such as Garganega and Corvina.

Azienda Agricola Cavalchina (Bianco di Custoza DOC, Bianco di Custoza Superiore DOC, Bardolino DOC, Bardolino Chiaretto DOC, Bardolino Chiaretto DOC) – Azienda Agricola Prendina (Merlot Garda DOC, Alto Mincio Pinot Grigio IGT) – Azienda Agricola Torre d’Orti (Amarone della Valpolicella DOCG, Valpolicella Superiore DOC, Valpolicella Superiore Ripasso DOC, Rosso Provincia di Verona IGT): “..we managed to keep the sanitary state of the grapes under control with a lot of care and timely work in the vineyards…we picked and carefully selected the grapes by hand…..We started the harvest in mid August and we finished on the 10th of October…… the grapes drying at the Prendina and at the Torre d’Orti estates are in excellent condition. The wines have slightly less structure, but they are fresh and the aromatics are good….The grape yield was lower this year…..”

VALDOBBIADENE (Province of Treviso): The winter was unusually mild (the thermometer went below 0 degrees Celsius only once during the night). The springtime was mild and rainy. This climate caused an early flowering of the vines. This together with rain and strong wind, caused difficulties for the Glera vines. The fruit setting phase was made faster by 10 days of intense heat during the second half of June. During the summer the days were overcast, with rain and with mild temperature at night. On the 17th of July and on the 19th of August there were two hailstorms. The months of July and of August slowed down the ripening process of the grapes so that the harvest period started during the third week of September instead of the first week of the month. Luckily it rained for only two days during the week of September which was positive for the harvest operations. The grape yield was lower this year in comparison to the previous vintages.

Daniele D’Anna nephew of Bruno Bortolotti owner of Cantine Umberto Bortolotti (Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG, Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore DOCG Rive, Valdobbiadene Superiore di Cartizze DOCG, VSQ, Prosecco Treviso DOC). Cantine U. Bortolotti vinify the grapes grown by a group of viticulturists, within the Valdobbiadene zone, that have been carefully selected over the years: “…The harvest started on the 18th of September and it finished on the 27th of September. The grape yield was approximately 12 tons/hectare, about 15% less than in the other vintages. We followed organic practices (without certification) in some vineyards of the Valdobbiadene DOCG Rive. The must that still had not fermented, but that was only clarified, showed good aromatics. The musts had the body and the potential for sparkling wine of high quality. The wines have now been fermenting for 10 days without problems (18th of October). The Valdobbiadene Prosecco wines have been selected for the “base” version, for the “47” version and for Cartizze and Rive. After the vinification and after the wines have rested in the vats till the end of December, we will evaluate whether to release all the versions of Valdobbiadene Prosecco Superiore Rive. The 2014 vintage could be compared to 2007…..”