e had very good reports from all the producers of our portfolio. Harvest was early this year although not as early as everyone thought at the beginning of the summer. In general winter was mild and dry without snow. There was rain in springtime, blooming and flowering of the vines was early, temperature was high in July, but in August nights were cool and there were rains at the end of the month so that the vegetative cycle of the vines slowed down and the grapes could complete the ripening process. Weather was good during harvest. The forecast for the 2007 wines is excellent.

CASTIGLION FALLETTO (Province of Cuneo) Enrico Scavino owner of Azienda Agricola Paolo Scavino (Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Langhe Bianco DOC, Langhe Rosso DOC): “….2007 is a great and rare vintage. The wines have good acidity, beautiful colours, great structure, elegance and will be suitable for long ageing. Yields were lower (approx. – 10%)…..We started picking white varietals at the end of August, Dolcetto on the 8-10/09, Nebbiolo on the 21/22 September, a first lot of Barbera on the 20/21 September and the rest on the 24/25 September…….” Alfio Cavallotto – Tenuta Fratelli Cavallotto (Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Langhe Bianco DOC, Langhe Chardonnay DOC, Langhe Freisa DOC)”…the hail we had on the 27 March affected only the yield, that was lower than usual, but certainly not the quality of the grapes which was excellent. The harvest of Nebbiolo was not as early as anticipated, in fact we picked one week earlier than usual (this was due to the cool nights). The wines have aromatic complexity, beautiful colour, good alcohol percentage and high acidity. We picked white varietals and Dolcetto 18 days earlier than usual. Although there was not much rain this year, the vines did not suffer from hydric stress. We started picking Nebbiolo on the 3-4 October and finished on the 10th of October, harvest of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir started on W the 28th of August, Dolcetto was picked starting on the 6th of September and Barbera the 23rd of September..”

MONFORTE (Province of Cuneo) Massimo Conterno assistant to Domenico Clerico owner of Azienda Agricola Domenico Clerico (Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Langhe Dolcetto DOC, Langhe Rosso DOC): “…..a super vintage! Comparable with 2005, 2006 and 2004. At harvest the grapes were flawless. The harvest was not as early as we had thought at first…..We started picking Dolcetto on the 4-5 September, Barbera on the 18-19 September and Nebbiolo on the 23/24 September. We finished on the 3-4 October…” Riccardo Seghesio co-owner of Azienda Agricola Aldo e Riccardo Seghesio (Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Langhe Rosso DOC):”…we did not expect the harvest to be so good. We had hail in May, but in the end the grape yield was only 15% lower than usual and the quality of all varietals (Dolcetto, Barbera and Nebbiolo) was excellent. We will have to wait and see how the wines evolve, but we can certainly already say that they are well structured and have good colour and alcohol percentage. An extremely good vintage. In August it got cooler and there were a couple of days of rain. This slowed down the ripening process so that we had flawless and ripe grapes…”

LA MORRA (Province of Cuneo) Silvia Altare – Azienda Agricola Elio Altare (Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Langhe Rosso DOC): “…. It was a spectacular harvest. It was 15 days early..It was not too hot during the summer, consequently the wines are elegant and not too alcoholic….Excellent forecast for all wines…We started with Dolcetto on the 29 August and we continued with the other varietals….This year we picked one varietal after the other without a break…….” Carlo Revello – Azienda Agricola Fratelli Revello (Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Langhe Nebbiolo DOC): “The climate was dry, but it rained at the right moment (2-3 days in mid June and storms at the end of August), so that there was no hydric stress for the vines. Blooming and flowering was early so that the harvest was 15 days early….A very good harvest, excellent forecast for the wines. Slightly lower yields..We started with Dolcetto at the beginning of September and we finished with Nebbiolo on the 2 October…”

BAROLO (Province of Cuneo) Chiara Boschis owner of Azienda Agricola E. Pira & Figli and consulting oenologist and agronomist Gianni Famà (Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC): “….the wines will be powerful, but with great balance. There was hail in Barolo, but luckily this happened early in the vegetative cycle so that, although the yield was lower than 2006, quality was extremely good as ripening of the grapes continued without problems. It was similar to an early green harvest….The wines have good alcohol percentage, good colour, they are well structured and will be suitable for long ageing…..”

SERRALUNGA (Province of Cuneo) Paolo Manzone owner of Azienda Agricola Paolo Manzone (Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC): “….a wonderful vintage, one to be remembered. The quality of the grapes was marvellous as ripening was excellent. …The colours of the 2007 Barolo are beautiful.. We had good weather during the harvest with only a light rain half way through. Harvest started on the 3r d September with Dolcetto, we picked the Nebbiolo for Barolo starting from the 22n d September. We finished on the 3r d October….” Giampaolo Pira of Azienda Agricola Pira Luigi & Figli (Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Langhe Nebbiolo DOC): “….2007 was a warm vintage, similar to 2000 and to 1997….the wines are well balanced with soft tannins. Yields were a bit lower (approx. –10%). I am satisfied with the harvest, the forecast for the wines is good, but I will have further information after the malolactic fermentation is over….”

BARBARESCO (Province of Cuneo) Sergio Minuto owner of Azienda Agricola Moccagatta (Barbaresco DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Langhe Chardonnay DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Langhe Nebbiolo DOC): “…a great harvest, a great vintage……. Although the yield was lower than usual, the quality of the grapes was very high. The must was rich in sugar and acidity, but it also had great balance, freshness, aromas and good colour. There is a great future for the wines. The climate was unusual: a mild and dry winter. It rained a lot in April so that the vines had a good supply of water. We have never seen such green grass in the vineyards as this year. The rains at the end of August were very helpful. The temperature range in August and in September was ideal (warm during the day and cool at night), similar to 2001 and 2004….We are very satisfied. We started picking white varietals on the 27 August, we started with the red varietals on the 17 September and finished on the 20 September.

NEIVE (Province of Cuneo) Andrea Sottimano, owner of Azienda Agricola Sottimano (Barbaresco DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Dolcetto d’Alba DOC, Langhe Nebbiolo DOC):”…the harvest was 10 days early, the grape yield was lower than usual, but excellent quality. The wines have incredible colours and structure, but I will have more detailed information after the malolactic fermentation is finished. …In August it was cool and there was rain, this balanced the ripening of the grapes and it was very positive for the ripening of the skins (especially important for Nebbiolo). Also in September it was cold at night and warm during the day which further improved the quality of the skins. Nice and long macerations on the skins (10-12 days and more). We started to pick Dolcetto at the end of August, Barbera during the second week of September, Nebbiolo for Langhe Nebbiolo on the 22-23 September and at the end of September we started picking Nebbiolo for Barbaresco. We finished during the first week of October….”

CASTAGNOLE DELLE LANZE – COSTIGLIOLE D’ASTI (Province of Asti), GRINZANE CAVOUR – NEIVE – TREISO (Province of Cuneo) Pinuccio Gatti – Azienda Agricola La Spinetta (Barbaresco DOCG, Moscato d’Asti DOCG, Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Asti DOC, Langhe Nebbiolo DOC, Langhe Bianco DOC, Piemonte Chardonnay DOC): “…from the agronomical point of view it was an excellent harvest with no problems due to the weather. The grapes were flawless. Ripening was completed 20 days early. The wines have an excellent colour and a good alcohol percentage. The resulting wines are good, full bodied and with a beautiful colour. The winter was mild, springtime was early so that the vegetative cycle of the vines was also very early. There was little rain, but it luckily rained in August. We started picking Chardonnay on the 13 August, followed by Moscato, Barbera, Nebbiolo for Barbaresco and by Nebbiolo for Barolo.

ROERO (Province of Cuneo) Luca Rostagno Cellar Master of Azienda Agricola Matteo Correggia (Roero DOC, Roero Arneis DOC, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Langhe Bianco DOC, Langhe Rosso DOC, Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC): “…a super harvest. Incredible reds. The wines are extremely well balanced, the tannins are very sweet. We didn’t have any hail, the yield was 15-20% lower than other vintages. The length of the vegetative cycle was normal as it started and finished earlier. …We started the harvest with Sauvignon during the last week of August and we finished picking on the 6-7th of October…Whites were 10-15 days early, reds were a week early…”

GATTINARA (Province of Vercelli) Alberto Zoppis – Azienda Agricola Antoniolo (Gattinara DOCG, Coste della Sesia DOC, Erbaluce di Caluso DOC): “This year the harvest started on the 20th of September and finished on the 1st of October, the harvest usually begins on the 2n d -3r d of October. We had a mild and dry winter, flowering of the vines was early during the 1st week of May (instead of the end of the month). In the summer we had a hot spell from the second half of July, but August was cool and in September the temperature was not too high. There was rain in August and in September and this was very good for the vines. We had no hail in this area. This is a very good vintage, we are very happy and we produced all wines including Rosato. …The quality of the wines is good, good alcohol percentage and acidity. We had a good must yield….”

DOGLIANI (Province of Cuneo) Paolo Boschis – Azienda Agricola Francesco Boschis (Dolcetto di Dogliani DOC, Dogliani DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Langhe Freisa DOC, Piemonte Grignolino DOC, Langhe Bianco DOC): “The harvest was 15 days earlier than usual. We had no snow this year, the vines started their vegetative cycle 15 days early. June and July were dry, there were some storms in August. The wines are rich in colour with a good alcohol percentage. For more precise information on colour and aroma we have to wait for the end of malo-lactic fermentation. Yield was good, the acidity is also good there wines are therefore fresh and will have a long life span….”

DIANO D’ALBA (Province of Cuneo) Claudio Alario owner of Azienda Agricola Alario (Dolcetto di Diano DOC, Barolo DOCG, Barbera d’Alba DOC, Nebbiolo d’Alba DOC): “An excellent harvest. The grape yield was slightly lower, the wines have a very good colour and good alcohol percentage. The forecast for 2007 wines is excellent. We were one the last estate to begin picking in this area: we started on the 8-9 September and finished on the 29t h of the month…”