| Winemakers around the world are voicing their concerns following predictions that 2007 is set to be the warmest year on record, along with a potential recurrence of the El Niño phenomenon.
'It is imperative that we begin to address the issue of global warming by defining and implementing long-term solutions,' says Opus One winemaker Michael Silacci. Frank Mitolo, of Mitolo Wines in Australia 's McLaren Vale, describes the situation as, 'one of the scariest periods in history in terms of weather patterns and the impact on our agriculture.'
'It is quite a wake-up call to anyone believing that global warming isn't their concern,' said Mitolo. 'Even if it's not on your doorstep, at the very least it's still going to tiptoe up and make itself felt on your supermarket shopping bill."
Meanwhile, winemakers along the eastern Pacific Rim, including those in Chile and California are bracing themselves for the rains and unstable weather patterns caused by the unusually warm oceanic currents of El Niño, an ocean-atmosphere phenomenon causing major temperature and rainfall fluctuations.
Winemaking consultant Paul Hobbs, who works in both California and Chile, is more worried about El Niño than global warming. 'My greatest concern is El Niño and the added precipitation and instability it can bring,' he said. 'Strong El Niño years are usually problematic vintages (because of the rain) and also because they tend to be cooler.'
TJ Evans of the Chilean Córpora group said that El Niño combined with high temperatures would be a 'grim scenario' needing careful planning in the vineyard to avoid high-alcohol, sweet or defective wines.
Though global warming is causing widespread concern in the global winemaking community, many urge caution.
Francisco Baettig, of Chilean winery Errázuriz, urges a wider engagement with the issue.
'For me global warming is a very big issue,' he said. 'The effects are showing that the problem is real and that it will affect agriculture, wine production included, as well as people's way of life. We should all take this thing seriously.'
The consensus among the Climate Change panel members at the Unified Wine and Grape Symposium held last week in California was that change is imminent, and is already happening. How that change will continue to manifest remains uncertain. The temperatures will continue to rise over the next few years and this will directly affect at least some of the wines.
Canadian icewine makers have already suffered heavily this year with reduced crops due to temperatures not going below the mandatory temperature of -7º C.
The predominant message of the panel seemed to be that in order to roll with the inevitable temperature shifts over the next few decades, winemakers will have to be adaptable and ready to diversify. Whether it is changing the grape varietals or shifting the methods used in creating wine to prepare for shorter ripening periods and the longer growing season, winemakers will have to depart from tradition. It may also force consumers to think differently about the wines they drink, to lose their attachments to certain varietals and regions and learn to embrace new ones. The history of the wine industry will definitely not determine its future.
Several other institutions are planning events to discuss the issue. The Wine Academy of Spain, an affiliate of Indian Wine Academy is organising the IInd International Conference, ‘Climate Change and Wine 2008’ in Madrid on Feb. 15-16, 2008 with the support of O.I.V. France. Leading experts will gather again to discuss the impact of climate change on the wine industry around the world.
Says Pancho Campo, the President of the Academy, ‘The Wine Academy of Spain organised the first Conference two years ago in order to analyse a problem that the wine industry had never faced until now. The response was tremendous with 148 professionals taking part in the seminar and debates for 2 days. We hope the experts will be able to offer some solutions at the event’.
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