The weather in southern Europe has had a positive impact on the grape cultivation, says Giacomo Grande, technical manager of grape breeder Grape Evolution: "In 2024, the table grapes regained their share, while producers have started replanting vineyards again, all this thanks to the excellent finish of the 2023 vintage. Looking at this season, the weather has played a positive role when it comes to the quality of our grapes. Not just ours, but grapes in general. With the current climate, our grapes have great quality and a definitive edge on the competition's grapes."
According to Grande, the Italian grapes are in very good demand this season. "This year's harvest already began in mid-May, in the Sicily region. And we'll be able to continue in Puglia from mid-June with our early grapes 'Prime, Star Light and Early Pearl', one white, one red and one black, these are the earliest table grapes in the world. At the moment, the demand is excellent, because the Italian product presents itself much better than others, certainly due to the favourable climatic conditions I spoke of earlier."
Grande hopes that changing the flavours of their grapes will have a positive effect in terms of beating the competition: "We're expecting good things in terms of reaching new markets this season, because our Grape Evolution grapes all have a particular flavour. We move from the traditional muscat flavour, to the new tropical flavours, ensuring that the consumer prefers our grapes over neutral ones with a more flat or neutral flavour," he concludes.
For more information:
Dimitrios Spanos
Grape Evolution
Tel: +30 694 615 6969
Email: [email protected]
www.grapeevolution.com