Supergrapes could make good wine despite climate change

(NBCNews) - Experts say "terroir" — the geography, geology and climate of grapes' native soils — defines the difference between good vintage and bad. But the plants' sensitivity to their environment also means that climate change presents a massive threat to the industry and that delicate balance. However, new genetic research may stave off those worries, even as the planet warms.

Working with Corvina grapes, a team of Italian geneticists identified genes that help protect the fruit from the vagaries of the weather and could serve as a platform "for breeding new cultivars with improved adaptation to the environment," the team reports Friday in the journal Genome Biology.

The team grew the grapes in 11 vineyards across the Verona region and harvested berries at various stages of ripening for three years to analyze which genes were expressed under what conditions — finding genes, for example, associated with a wine's taste, color and mouth-feel.

"We need to know more about this kind of thing across a wider range of varieties and climates," Gregory Jones, who studies the intersection of climate and grape growing at Southern Oregon University in Ashland, told NBC News. He said the Italian research, which he did not participate in, is "good stuff."