Vintage 2024
Exceptional in vineyard and cellar
Lighter, elegant, modern wines following a challenging year in the vineyard
Fruity white wines with finesse and elegant, delicate red wines: Even if (or precisely because) the 2024 vintage presented the winegrowers in Alto Adige with plenty of challenges and in some places painfully depressed yields, expectations for the 2024 vintage are high.
Fruity white wines with finesse and elegant, delicate red wines: Even if (or precisely because) the 2024 vintage presented the winegrowers in Alto Adige with plenty of challenges and in some places painfully depressed yields, expectations for the 2024 vintage are high.
The meteorological data show that the past wine-growing year was particularly challenging. The mildest winter for decades and an early flowering around 20 March were followed by a drop in temperature a month later, causing widespread frost damage. The frost was just the beginning, and the persistently cool, cloudy weather also resulted in fewer grapes with fewer berries.
"The lowest yields were recorded for Lagrein, Gewürztraminer and Pinot Grigio, while Schiava, Merlot and Riesling were relatively unaffected by the bad weather during flowering," Hansjörg Hafner from the Alto Adige Advisory Council for Fruit and Winegrowing explained. Looking at Valle Isarco, Andreas Huber from the Pacher Hof in Novacella near Bressanone talked of 15 to 70 per cent yield losses, while Martin Lemayr, cellar master at the Cantina Colterenzio, even mentioned isolated total losses.
Challenging year, late harvest
The meteorological challenges meant that the harvest took place later than usual - and with interruptions due to rain, "but at least that gave us wineries some breathing space", Andreas Huber said with a wry smile. He spoke of a "demanding year" that required a lot of work and commitment in the vineyard. "Especially where hailstones had caused damage, the individual affected grapes had to be sorted out by hand", the wine grower from Valle Isarco commented.
2024 was a challenging year for Alto Adige winegrowers due to frost and humidity. Veronika Pfeifer from Pfannenstielhof in Bolzano confirmed this: "Not only was intensive and careful manual labour required in the vineyard, but also flexibility and timely action."
And the winner is Pinot
The weather-related losses meant that many wineries in Alto Adige were only able to harvest far fewer volumes than in previous years. "However, the quality of the grapes themselves was not affected, thanks to precise foliage work and careful harvesting," Pfeifer stated. This was true in particular for all Pinot grape varieties , which were harvested healthy and with a good level of ripeness. Martin Lemayr's assessment of the Pinot Nero from the 2024 vintage was therefore correspondingly positive: "It is characterised by fresh fruit aromas such as raspberry and sour cherry and has a very clear, intense, bright and radiant colour," the cellar master from the Cantina Colterenzio stated. "The wines have less sweetness and are characterised by liveliness, elegance and a delicate tannin structure."
The late-ripening varieties, on the other hand, presented quite a few challenges. For best results under the prevailing conditions, a particularly good instinct for the right timing and a great deal of care were required during the harvest. "The late-ripening, tannin-rich red wine varieties certainly had a harder time and only reached full ripeness in a few vineyards, which is why some 2024 special reserves were not produced,” Lemayr explained.
Autochthonous wines
The same applies to the Schiava wines, to which Veronika Pfeifer attributed slightly less alcohol than in previous years. She described the new vintage with three simple keywords: fresh, fruity and fine.
Like most other grape varieties, the second autochthonous variety, Lagrein, has also suffered from the weather conditions - albeit mainly in terms of quantity. "It is slightly below average in some zones due to coulure during flowering and the spring frosts,” oenologist Pfeifer explained, describing the Lagrein 2024 as "harmonious, velvety and smooth".
White wines with fruit and finesse
South Tyrolean white wines do not seem to have been affected by the meteorological challenges - on the contrary: "The significant cooling in September had a particularly positive effect on the flavour, freshness, fruit and finesse," Andreas Huber from the Pacher Hof stated. The damp weather and the noble botrytis fungus infestation had ensured above-average quality, especially for the main Valle Isarco varieties Riesling, Kerner and Sylvaner. "We are very confident about the 2024 vintage, as the low yields and slow ripening of the grapes have created the basis for exceptionally finesse-rich and long-lasting white wines," Huber said.
Martin Lemayr’s conclusions are equally positive. "The white wines - including Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc - present with fine, fresh fruit flavours and an elegant, rather delicate structure." The aromatic varieties such as Sauvignon are also characterised by cool, slightly greenish, clear aromas and a lively, well-integrated acidity. "The wines are also characterised by a lower alcohol content, which further emphasises their freshness and drinking pleasure," the cellar master at the Cantina Colterenzio commented.
"The lowest yields were recorded for Lagrein, Gewürztraminer and Pinot Grigio, while Schiava, Merlot and Riesling were relatively unaffected by the bad weather during flowering," Hansjörg Hafner from the Alto Adige Advisory Council for Fruit and Winegrowing explained. Looking at Valle Isarco, Andreas Huber from the Pacher Hof in Novacella near Bressanone talked of 15 to 70 per cent yield losses, while Martin Lemayr, cellar master at the Cantina Colterenzio, even mentioned isolated total losses.
Challenging year, late harvest
The meteorological challenges meant that the harvest took place later than usual - and with interruptions due to rain, "but at least that gave us wineries some breathing space", Andreas Huber said with a wry smile. He spoke of a "demanding year" that required a lot of work and commitment in the vineyard. "Especially where hailstones had caused damage, the individual affected grapes had to be sorted out by hand", the wine grower from Valle Isarco commented.
2024 was a challenging year for Alto Adige winegrowers due to frost and humidity. Veronika Pfeifer from Pfannenstielhof in Bolzano confirmed this: "Not only was intensive and careful manual labour required in the vineyard, but also flexibility and timely action."
And the winner is Pinot
The weather-related losses meant that many wineries in Alto Adige were only able to harvest far fewer volumes than in previous years. "However, the quality of the grapes themselves was not affected, thanks to precise foliage work and careful harvesting," Pfeifer stated. This was true in particular for all Pinot grape varieties , which were harvested healthy and with a good level of ripeness. Martin Lemayr's assessment of the Pinot Nero from the 2024 vintage was therefore correspondingly positive: "It is characterised by fresh fruit aromas such as raspberry and sour cherry and has a very clear, intense, bright and radiant colour," the cellar master from the Cantina Colterenzio stated. "The wines have less sweetness and are characterised by liveliness, elegance and a delicate tannin structure."
The late-ripening varieties, on the other hand, presented quite a few challenges. For best results under the prevailing conditions, a particularly good instinct for the right timing and a great deal of care were required during the harvest. "The late-ripening, tannin-rich red wine varieties certainly had a harder time and only reached full ripeness in a few vineyards, which is why some 2024 special reserves were not produced,” Lemayr explained.
Autochthonous wines
The same applies to the Schiava wines, to which Veronika Pfeifer attributed slightly less alcohol than in previous years. She described the new vintage with three simple keywords: fresh, fruity and fine.
Like most other grape varieties, the second autochthonous variety, Lagrein, has also suffered from the weather conditions - albeit mainly in terms of quantity. "It is slightly below average in some zones due to coulure during flowering and the spring frosts,” oenologist Pfeifer explained, describing the Lagrein 2024 as "harmonious, velvety and smooth".
White wines with fruit and finesse
South Tyrolean white wines do not seem to have been affected by the meteorological challenges - on the contrary: "The significant cooling in September had a particularly positive effect on the flavour, freshness, fruit and finesse," Andreas Huber from the Pacher Hof stated. The damp weather and the noble botrytis fungus infestation had ensured above-average quality, especially for the main Valle Isarco varieties Riesling, Kerner and Sylvaner. "We are very confident about the 2024 vintage, as the low yields and slow ripening of the grapes have created the basis for exceptionally finesse-rich and long-lasting white wines," Huber said.
Martin Lemayr’s conclusions are equally positive. "The white wines - including Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc - present with fine, fresh fruit flavours and an elegant, rather delicate structure." The aromatic varieties such as Sauvignon are also characterised by cool, slightly greenish, clear aromas and a lively, well-integrated acidity. "The wines are also characterised by a lower alcohol content, which further emphasises their freshness and drinking pleasure," the cellar master at the Cantina Colterenzio commented.
