Wine feels the effects of a changing climate
Tuesday, January 8, 2013 - 06:30
in Health & Medicine
The signs of climate change are universally evident, but for French winemakers, already feeling the effects of competition from other countries, the year of volatile weather does not bode well. A lot of rain, a late spring and a summer that never arrived have resulted in earlier harvests. This has contributed to grapes with lower acidity and higher sugar content. In other words, higher alcohol and fruitier resulting in cloying wines - with too much residual sugar and not enough acidity to balance the character of the wine.