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Two severe storms with hail destroyed up to 850 hectares of vineyards in the Spanish regions of Bierzo and Valdeorras. This means that around 20 per cent of the area was affected. Some hailstones were the size of golf balls, crushed grapes, tore leaves from the vines and damaged shoots and trunks.
Nacho León from the Demencia*** winery describes the situation as "Brutal. Around the municipality of Valtuille de Abajo, at least 90 per cent of the vineyards are damaged - if not 100 per cent." The nearby villages of Pieiros, Villadecanes, Parandones and Toral de los Vados were also hit by the storm and around 70 per cent of their vines were damaged by hail. This means that both the 2024 and 2025 harvests will be affected. Some producers would have no grapes to harvest at all, and for the others it might not be worth harvesting at all, explained the technical director of the DO Bierzo, Carmen Gómez.
The administrations of the affected areas have called on winegrowers to treat the vines anyway in order to heal the wounds caused by the hail and prevent the growth of fungi.
(al / Source: Decanter)