A few weeks ago, I landed in Italy for the Veneto fairs—or at least two of them—ViniVeri in Cerea and VinNatur in Montebello. Waiting to be picked up at the Verona airport, I stripped off my jacket, wishing my feet were in sandals. It was unnaturally warm at 83 degrees, and in April, that’s dangerous. One could feel the impending disaster when the weather broke—as it would. Hail or frost?
The first person I saw at the fair was Diego Losada of Bierzo.
Losada, you know him as Bodegas La Senda, who makes wines that can truly rock your world. He came to taste, to have fun, not pour. But he the previous vintage where he barely had a healthy grape demoralized him. It didn’t take long for him to get into it. “I feel like it is only raining, hailing, or mildewing on my vineyards.” He laughed because, as he said, "What else can I do?"
But, of course, it's not just a cloud over his vines. Every conversation with a winemaker turns to the challenges of the climate and the uncertainty of carrying a vintage to birth. One can count on disaster; only one never knows which plagues will befall. The vine's early leafing might have been beautiful three weeks ahead this year, but an early freeze would come. And it did. This week.
Among the unlucky was the Jura, from the north to the south. Katie Worobeck (Maison Maenad) in Revermont told me she most likely lost 95% of her production. Auvergne, as well. The Mosel. Some spots in Spain. And the hearts break. I thought back to Diego. I checked in. "All good?" He was safe—this time.