PIWI is a German acronym for pilzwiderstandsfähig, meaning fungus-resistant, which encapsulates one of the most radical ideas in contemporary viticulture: to create a vine that does not need to be defended with pesticides, because it carries resistance written in its DNA. This is not a recent utopia. The story began in the second half of the 19th century, when phylloxera and fungal diseases, downy mildew and powdery mildew, devastated European vineyards. The answer was hybridization: crossing European Vitis vinifera with naturally resistant American and Asian varieties, selecting the best plants, and starting over. A long process, averaging 10-15 years for each new variety, which throughout the 20th century produced grapevines capable of growing healthy with very few, often zero, treatments. Today, PIWI varieties can cover up to 95-98% of Vitis vinifera genetic heritage, making them virtually indistinguishable in terms of quality from traditional grape varieties.

The paradox of PIWI is that, born to solve an agronomic problem, they have become a cultural response. Those who cultivate them do not do so because it is easier; it is still careful, manual viticulture, respectful of the soil, but because they believe that the future of wine must come from here: less chemistry, fewer tractors, more vibrant vineyards, and healthier ecosystems. The varieties I select, Solaris, Bronner, Souvignier Gris, and others, come from producers who work organically on mountain or lowland soils, with spontaneous fermentations and minimal intervention in the cellar. Wines that express the terroir with the same precision as any great indigenous grape variety, without the vine having had to be saved by force of treatments.