Vines are hardy plants that will grow in the most unlikely of places.
Does that mean that we can make wine anywhere in the world?
As a general rule we say that the zone in the world that is capable of making quality wine is between 30° – 50° north and 30° – 50° south. Within these boundaries, there is generally enough sunshine to ripen grapes sufficiently and the climate is suitable.
In recent years, we’ve seen those boundaries move and change slightly. This is mostly due to climate change.
Vines have a minimum requirement for water (which can be provided by irrigation) and of course sunshine to ripen the fruit. Extremes of temperature are not good for vines. Temperatures that dip into the minus 20’s will kill vines and temperatures of over 37°C will scorch them.
Seasons are good for the vine. It needs time to replenish and restore its natural reserves during the winter months and a period of cool weather allows the vine to go into dormancy before starting again for another season.
Vines will also grow in areas outside of these zones but if the temperature doesn’t drop sufficiently for the vines to go into dormancy, they will continue to produce grapes more than once a year. The only way to prevent this is to prune them more than once during the year.
Excessively low temperatures can be mitigated by covering the vines up during harsh winter months. This is done in some areas of China (the vines are buried during the winter months to protect them and then uncovered when the risk is over).
As our climate changes and the boundaries are shifting, so growers are having to address different issues in the vineyard. Methods of pruning, training, canopy management and irrigation are all up for discussion.
I’ll be looking at this over the coming weeks. Join me for a little wine education and raise a glass wherever you are.
