, A Signature Variety

original artwork by JoAnn Stevens

Napa has cabernet; the Willamette Valley has pinot noir. It’s conventional marketing wisdom that a wine region has to have a “signature variety” to succeed in the market. This conventional wisdom is a climate change denier. Climate change, or as Jamie Goode so aptly calls it “climate chaos,” is playing hell with wine regions with all their grapes in one basket.

Around the world in Bordeaux, Napa, Willamette Valley and many other famous wine place names, growers are searching for alternatives to their famed signature varieties that are facing climates decidedly changed from the conditions that made them famous.

In Bordeaux, they recently allowed six new varieties, including Portugal’s touriga nacional and alvarinho (albarino in Spain). Pinot noir will not be dislodged from Burgundy anytime soon, but once lesser appellations, that had trouble ripening grapes every vintage, are coming into the spotlight as the revered Crus are now too warm to produce Burgundy in the classically elegant style that made the Côte d’Or famous.

Writes Jamie Goode in WineMag.co.za, “The test case here is Burgundy, the home of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (and, of late, Aligoté which is now getting a bit more recognition by the geeks at least). Vintages have been getting earlier and warmer here, which isn’t always a terrible thing, but is a trend that is scaring many in the region. The region built its reputation on its 930 climats, including some of the world’s

This Article was originally published on Craig Camp

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