A meeting on the development of viticulture in Valle Camonica was held in Breno on Friday 4th February: 2022 will be a very important year for the Val.so.vi.ca. project. Led by the Consorzio Vini IGT Valcamonica, the UNIMONT centre of the University of Milan, the Comunità Montana di Valle Camonica, the Fondazione Fojanini di Studi di Superiori, and 20 producers of Valcamonica are working to identify new development opportunities for this sector as well as new tools for environmental conservation and territorial marketing.
Viticulture in Valle Camonica nowadays can count on 23 farms that cultivate 142 hectares of vineyards, distributed in an area stretching from the northern amphitheater of Lake Iseo to mid Valle Camonica, in a multi-faceted territory, enhanced by the variety and quality of wine production.
The project for the sustainable enhancement of viticulture in Valle Camonica – Val.So.Vi.Ca. started in 2019, with the aim of relaunching the wine sector in Valle Camonica and focusing on the study of viticultural zoning of the valley to identify the strengths of the different areas and the related agronomic and oenological strategies that can allow the Valle Camonica wine system to reach a competitive position on regional, national and international markets. The results of the zoning studies will also be channelled into a Territory User Manual which represents an important planning and management tool for environmental resources in relation to wine production: in this way the wines are increasingly identified with the place of origin and can be promoted together, allowing the characteristics of the production area to be recognized in the wine.
From this perspective, zoning is the ideal platform for the development of entrepreneurial know-how in the area: a process of “product quality” that promotes “business quality” by bringing widespread innovation to various aspects of the production chain (producers, distributors, restaurateurs, hoteliers, tour operators, public and local administration, etc. ..).
Another project that aims to promote sustainable viticulture and which sees the collaboration of the University of Milan with its UNIMONT centre, the Pontedilegno -Tonale Consortium, the Consorzio Vini di Valcamonica and the Bignotti Winery, concerns the study of the organoleptic qualities of 200 bottles of wine placed inside an ice cellar at over 2,000 meters above sea level.
The purpose of this study is to identify how high altitude and low temperatures can modify the characteristics of the wines of the Valle Camonica, also creating an added value for tourists and therefore promoting the area. This new experiment was received with great interest as it transforms the specific features of mountain areas into elements of competitiveness and favors the implementation of innovative approaches and strategic collaboration – between local authorities, businesses, local people and tourists – aimed at enhancing the mountains and the products of Valle Camonica.