Climate change could ‘alter wine production’

(TheDrinksBusiness) - A climate change expert in the US has said that extreme weather events, such as the recent storms in France, will become more commonplace.

Antonio Busalacchi, who directs the University of Maryland Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Centre and chairs the World Climate Research Programme’s Joint Scientific Committee and the National Research Council Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate, published his findings on Livescience.com. 

Busalacchi and his research assistant Eric Hackert analysed climate change impacts on two dozen of the world’s major wine producing regions in both the new and old world. 

Busalacchi claimed that some of the extreme events, like the recent hail storms across France, could become more frequent. He said: “Extreme events, such as heat waves that shut down photosynthesis and hail storms that can ruin a chateau’s annual production in a matter of minutes, will become more commonplace.” 

In publishing his findings Busalacchi wrote: “Climate change will produce winners and losers among wine-growing regions, and for every region it will result in changes to the alcohol, acid, sugar, tannins and colour contained in each wine.