ALL CREATURES GREAT AND NOT SO GREAT

Climate change is shifting the balance of vineyard biodiversity, creating new challenges for wine-growers

- GEMMA HADLEY

As climate change intensifies, its impact on vineyards around the world is doing the same. High temperatures are altering the timing of events such as bud burst and grape maturity, while also having an impact on grape chemistry. Changing weather patterns are affecting water availability and the frequency of devastating hailstorms.

Meanwhile, the effect on vineyard ecosystems is also becoming increasingly evident, as rising temperatures and increasingly frequent extreme weather events are causing species of bird, insect and mammal to move in unpredictable and unprecedented ways.

Worldwide, wine-growers are noticing shifts in the wildlife that inhabits or visits their vineyards. Creatures that once kept their distance or followed predictable migration patterns are now showing up at unusual times or in greater numbers, often with costly consequences. Insect pests in particular are both becoming more abundant and increasing their ranges, and some of them are intensifying the disease pressure on the vines.

And while the impact is mostly felt in the vineyard, the viticultural shifts can become oenological ones, as winemakers contend with compromises to vine health and harvest quality and timing, which can shape the structure, balance and expression of the wines we drink. As yields fluctuate and pests force earlier or later harvests, the wines we know and love may vary in acidity, sugar levels or aromatic profiles as growers and winemakers adjust to new realities.

Insects: prolific and potentially pungent