2010

In the Langa and Roero area, 2010 was cooler and wetter than normal. Due to the heavy precipitation over the fall and winter months, the amount of rain and snowfall in 2010 was well above the average of the past 20 years (>1000 mm).

With an average annual temperature of about 11,5°C, 2010 (from January to December) will be also remembered as one of the coldest years on record, owing to the heavy rainfall in the fall and winter period.

Instead, during the vines’ growth cycle period (April-September), rainfall was lower and July was warmer and drier than in 2009 (over 300 mm of rain were registered in April 2009).

Average early spring temperatures (from March to mid-April) led to regular bud-break of all varieties and in line with the seasonal norm. In the same period, rainfall was below average.

From mid-April to late June, the weather was poor, with about thirty days of steady rainfall that contributed to the plants’ growth, despite the sharp temperature drop between May 4th and the 20th . It was a very difficult period from the operational point of view.

Flowering was about 8-10 days late compared to 2009. Late June was marked by a reversal of the trend: the rain ceased, temperatures increased and the weather was very hot throughout the month of July, similarly to the past few years, and with no showers at all until the last three days of the month.

The warm July weather helped veraison set in within the averages of previous vintages. The growth cycle was accelerated by abundant rainfall and the ripening was expected to occur ahead of time, even earlier than in 2009. Instead, August weather was rainy, wet and cool and took a turn for the worse around the 15th. From August 20th to September 10th, the weather was fine again, and then it rained nearly every week until late October.

The warm July and late August temperatures brought on the ripening of the early varieties and the phenolic ripening on the late varieties such as Barbera and Nebbiolo, also owing to the significant night-day temperature shifts that are typical of the season.