Riesling in Danger

Filed in archive Wine News on February 13, 2007

Though most scientists cannot agree at to why the Earth is getting warmer, most can agree that it is getting warmer. A few from the chicken-littte side of the argument believe pollution has something to do with. Others think it's just a natural cycle of the Earth. Either way, one thing is for sure - Riesling is getting hit hard.

From Vintners in ferment over warm climate:

The special quality of Rhine Riesling relies on a mix of cool nights and warm days for slow ripening. At the end of the 19th century, Riesling wines, known as "Hock," were fetching higher prices than claret from Chateau Lafite and Veuve Clicquot champagne, according to a list from Berry Brothers & Rudd, a London wine seller.

Today's Rheingau Rieslings are again winning accolades, putting the era of cheap and sickly German wines such as Liebfraumilch to rest.

But warmer average temperatures are threatening to redraw the wine map. Red-grape varieties such as cabernet sauvignon and merlot, traditionally grown in the south, will migrate northward by 125 to 250 miles and up hillsides by 100 to 150 yards, said Hans Schultz of the Research Institute at Geisenheim in the Rheingau.

By 2040, cabernet sauvignon will flourish where Riesling does now.

Bum - mer!