Lengthening seasons threaten Italian wine

June 23, 2011
ROME, Italy ― The family of Alberto Marsetti has made wine in Valtellina, in the north of Italy, for at least six generations. So he noticed when things started to change.
“The watershed year was 2007,” Marsetti said. “That’s when we realized we had to stop thinking in terms of exceptional years and that it was ‘normal years’ that had changed.”
In the last two decades, Marsetti said, he had to adjust his winemaking to account for climatic abnormalities he attributes to global warning. Rather than a rise in average temperatures, earlier springs and warmer autumns made his grapes sweeter, leading to more alcoholic wines.
The phenomenon has been especially conspicuous in the hillsides around the village of Chiuro, where vineyards rise as high as 2,000 feet above sea level.
“Twenty years ago,” Marsetti said, “we struggled to get decent grapes from the vineyards at such an altitude. We used the grapes to make down-to-earth table wines, those you can have a couple of glasses of at lunch every day, not for the top quality wines.”
“Now, instead, we get medium- or high-quality grapes from there too, and the wines have become over 1 percent stronger,” he continued. Instead, vineyards downhill that used to make grapes for the best wines are experiencing problems, such as prolonged dry spells that can entirely change the quality of grapes.
The changes are happening all over Italy, said Domenico Bosco, who heads the wine producers division of Colidiretti, Italy’s biggest farmers’ association. Now the increase in alcohol content that results from the lengthening seasons is being seen as a problem.
“Until a few years ago,” Bosco said, “people thought that the more alcoholic a wine was, the better its quality.” In fact, winemakers responded to the demand from consumers for stronger wines by making their wines richer in taste and more alcoholic.
But this, warns Bosco, is now changing. Some consumers have started seeking out lower-alcohol wines for reasons of taste. Meanwhile, new laws in Italy and across Europe have clamped down on drunk driving and alcoholism. Producers, however, are struggling to adapt as forces beyond their control push their wine’s alcohol content up.
“In the last 10 years,” said Gabriella Tani, an oenologist from Tuscany, “summers have been hotter and we have had more and more wines with high alcohol content, at 15 percent or more.” This is a problem, she adds, particularly with wine made from Merlot grapes.
Winemakers have a range of options available to fight the effects of climate change. They can water their vineyards more, but with rising temperatures and rain becoming more erratic, in many regions this is not an option. They can harvest the grapes earlier, but sometimes this compromises the taste and quality of the wine.
Or they can try relocating their vineyards further uphill. According to oenologist Francesco Bartoletti, in general “100 more meters [328 feet] of altitude means a loss of about 1 percent in alcohol content.”
While there are vineyards at 4,000 feet in the Alps and even higher on the Etna volcano in Sicily, such an altitude would fundamentally change many Italian wines whose character comes from the place where the grapes have grown for hundreds of years. It also means they would not qualify for Italy wine classification system, which labels wines as DOC or DOCG according to their place of origin and methods of production.
“We might have to change some of these rules,” said Bosco. “Maybe not for the big name wines, but probably for the medium-quality ones or they won’t be able to stand up against the competition.”
In fact, climate change is proving favorable for countries such as Germany that have previously been considered too cold for wine-making. For Bosco, “climate change and a taste for ‘lighter’ wines are helping Continental European wines.” Wines from England and other northern countries hold new promise.
“The future,” said Bartoletti, “will see vineyards move north,” while southern European vintners in traditional wine-producing countries will suffer.
Some say the answer lies in big-scale industrial techniques, such as alcohol removal, already widely employed in countries including Australia or South Africa. France and Spain ― two other big European wine-producers that have to cope with the effects of global warming ― have already made it legal. But in Italy, with its small wineries and its strong emphasis in traditional winemaking techniques, such a technique might be more difficult to accept.
“After all, wine is an agricultural product, not an industrial one, and it can’t follow consumers’ tastes blindly,” Bosco said. “If you apply an industrial process such as alcohol removal, it’s not wine anymore. You’ll have to call it something else: maybe ‘wine-based beverage.’”

Clark Wine Center is more than a wine shop to people living in Pampanga Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone. Clark’s wine shop is also a popular venue for parties and family gatherings. Conveniently located on the main highway of Clark Philippines, it is accessible to guests from Manila, Subic, Pampanga, Angeles City and of course those who live and work in Clark. Aside from the 2-storey wine shop which also has a nice roof deck lawn for small party of up to 80 people as well as an indoor wine tasting room which accommodates up to 60 comfortably, this wine store called Clark Wine Center also has one hectare of picnic grounds surrounding it.

Best birthday gift to send to someone living in the Philippines is a nice bottle of wine from Yats Wine Cellars. Delivery of birthday wine can made to Manila, Angeles City Pampanga, Clark Philippines and Subic.

Wine Shop Manila offers best luxurious beers in Philippines called Vintage Beer.
Birthday gift of wine is the most popular gift idea this year in Philippines. Yats Wine Cellars offers birthday wine gifts that are unique and certain to make the recipient very happy. These birthday wines are not available in wine shops so it is a unique bottle of wine for the recipient.

This Manila Wine Shop is the largest wine shop in Philippines. This is the wine shop to go for fine vintage wines, not just the big names like Lafite, Latour, Petrus, Cristal, Krug, Grange, Vega Sicilia and Sassicaia. This wine shop in Manila offers many excellent vintage wine for under p4,000, even for some that are 20-30 year old from St. Emilion and Pomerol.

Best place to buy wine in Clark Pampanga outside Manila near Subic and Angeles City Philippines is Clark Wine Center. Visitors buy wine in Manila and Pampanga should not miss stopping at this wine shop for a few bottles of fine vintage wines to bring home.

http://www.ClarkWineCenter.com

Getting to this wine shop in Pampanga Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone Philippines from Manila
Getting to the Clark Wine Center wine shop from Manila is quite simple: after entering Clark Freeport from Dau and Angeles City, proceed straight along the main highway M A Roxas. Clark Wine Center is the stand-along white building on the right, at the corner A Bonifacio Ave. From the Clark International Airport DMIA, ask the taxi to drive towards the entrance of Clark going to Angeles City. From Mimosa, just proceed towards the exit of Clark and this wine shop is on the opposite side of the main road M A Roxas.

Best place to buy wine in Clark Pampanga outside Manila near Subic and Angeles City Philippines is Clark Wine Center.

Click here to contact Clark Wine Center in Clark Pampanga for inquiries and orders.

Clark Wine Center
Bldg 6460 Clark Observatory Building
Manuel A. Roxas Highway corner A Bonifacio Ave,
Angeles Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga 2023
0922-870-5173 0917-826-8790 (ask for Ana Fe)

Wine@Yats-International.com

YATS Wine Cellars
Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 ask for Rea or Chay

Wedding couples looking for wedding reception venues and beach wedding venues can log on to this Philippines Wedding Venue web site for free information and assistance:

http://www.PhilippinesWeddingVenue.com

While in Clark, it might be a good idea to enjoy an evening of wine-and-dine in the fine dining Yats Restaurant and Wine Bar that features an award winning 2700-line wine list. Highly recommended fine dining restaurant in Manila for special occasion is Yats Restaurant & Wine Lounge located in the famous Mimosa Leisure Estate in Clark Pampanga. Situated near this popular restaurant in Clark is the Mimosa Golf Course as well as the Mimosa Clark Casino. This top rated restaurant near Angeles City Pampanga in Clark Philippines is frequently used for private parties and corporate functions such as board meetings and other gatherings. It is located in Mimosa Leisure Estate of Clark Freeport Zone. For more information, visit http://www.YatsRestaurant.com

YATS Leisure Philippines is a developer and operator of clubs, resorts and high-class restaurants and wine shops in Clark Angeles Philippines http://www.YatsLeisure.com

Looking for famous tourists spots, places to visit and see, relax and unwind in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines? You may want to check out these sites also:

http://www.LondonPubClark.com

Besides good restaurants to wine and dine near Manila, Subic or in Angeles City Pampanga, Clark Philippines, those requiring assistance for hotel and resort bookings in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines may log on to http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com for more information and reservations.

The lifestyle in Clark Pampanga is quite unique. For more information about shopping, sports, golf, leisure, hotel accommodation, where to see and visit, what to do, where to wine and dine and good places to hang out, relax, have a drink with friends, child-friendly establishments, log on to
http://www.ClarkPhilippines.com

Wine lovers looking for a special bottle or something that is of great value and special discounts might log on to this web site to shop for fine vintage wines
http://www.YatsWineCellars.com

Those visitors who plan to relax and unwind in Angeles City, Subic, Pampanga, Clark Philippines might make an effort to book a room at the famous beach and lake resort Clearwater Resort & Country Club. This famous hotel in Clark Pampanga is frequently visited by families with children looking for a good place in Clark to see, a good holiday destination for the family to relax and unwind in the beautiful outdoor facilities. For more information, log on to www.ClearwaterPhilippines.com