A research published in ‘Nature Climate Change’ journal, suggests that, although planting lesser-known grape varieties could counteract some of the effects of climate change, scientists and winegrowers need to explore how the wide diversity of this crop can be adapted to different climates.
One of the effects of global warming is that it will be complicated that in many in many wine regions to continue cultivating the same varieties that have been cultivated in the past. The Old World has an enormous diversity of vines – more than 1,000 varieties – and some of them seem better adapted to hot climates and tolerate drought better than the 12 that occupy 80% of the global wine market.
Unfortunately, convincing producers to try different varieties of grapes is a difficult task, and the reason is related to the concept of “native land”, which refers to the taste of the wine as a reflection of what grapes, where and how they were grown. Only certain traditionally used varieties are part of each “native land”, leaving small place for change. ‘In the main producing regions, there is the notion that the historical native land is what makes a great wine, and recognizing that the climate changes implies recognizing that the land is changing’, explains Professor Elizabeth Wolkovich, from the Department of Evolutionary Biology and of Organisms of the University of Harvard.
In addition, researchers still do not have enough data to determine if other varieties will be able to adapt to climate change.
You can read the full article here.