Posted on 12/13/2006 9:09:02 PM PST by quantim
British wine grapes are suddenly in the midst of the global warming controversy.
Historic records tell us that Britain grew wine grapes 2000 years ago during the Roman Warming, and 1000 years ago during the Medieval Warming. Since 1300, however, Britain has been too cold for wine grapes. The debate: Is human-induced warming boosting British temperatures to "unnatural" levels, or is the gradual warming a repeat of previous cycles?
The website English-wine.com says there are more than 400 vineyards in Britain today, and ". . . the good news about English wine [is] how good, even superb, it can be."
It certainly sounds like Britain has gotten warmer recently, but why? The same web site has a "History" section, which reveals:
"In England [today], it is only in about 2 years in every 10 that grape production will be really good, 4 years will be average and 4 years poor or terrible—largely due to weather and/or disease exacerbated by weather." (Sounds as if we aren't quite to "wine country warmth yet, doesn't it?)
The same web site also says:
"In the 1990s the increase in the number of vineyards and the acreage under cultivation has leveled off, maybe even declined a little. There are a number of reasons for this— many English vineyards have undoubtedly been established with little knowledge of, or even concern for, their financial viability. A saying has grown up that the best way to get a small fortune is to have a large fortune and buy an English vineyard. Whilst this is cruel, it is also pretty certain that it is true."
The web site RealClimate, though it believes fervently in man-made global warming, accurately laid out the last 1000 years of British wine-making on July 12, 2006:
"The earliest documentation that is better than anecdotal is from the Domesday Book (1087 AD) . . . Selley quotes Unwin (J. Wine Research, 1990) who records 46 vineyards across Southern England [at that time] . . . production clearly declined after the 13th century, and had a modest resurgence in the 17th and 18th centuries, only to decline to historic lows in the 19th century when only 8 vineyards are recorded. . . . English and Welsh wine production started to have a renaissance in the 1950s. By 1977, there were 124 reasonable-sized vineyards in production—more than at any other time over the previous millennium."
So, British wine-making thrived during the Medieval Warming, failed during the Little Ice Age (1300 to 1850), and began to make a comeback in the 1950s, after major world temperature surges between 1850–70 and 1920–40. The uncertain quality of today's British wine grapes indicates that Britain still isn't as warm now as during the Roman and Medieval Warmings.
This argues that we're in a long, natural climate cycle. So does the fact that more than 70 percent of the planet's recent warming occurred before 1940, and thus before humans emitted much CO2. Ice cores and seabed sediments show the 1500-year cycle extending back 900,000 years, and carbon 14 isotopes say it's linked to variations in the sun's irradiance.
British wine-growers are likely to have several more moderately warmer centuries in which to prosper. And wine-lovers will have more-pleasant weather in which to enjoy the wines than they did during the cold, cloudy and stormy Little Ice Age. A reduction in fossil fuel use might be a good strategy for the future, but apparently would have little impact on earth's climate.
Dennis T. Avery was a senior policy analyst for the U.S. State Department, where he won the National Intelligence Medal of Achievement. He is the co-author, with atmospheric physicist Fred Singer, of the book Unstoppable Global Warming—Every 1500 Years, available from Rowman & Littlefield. </snip>
Ping.
Click to be +/- on this low volume wine ping list.Oenology global warming news ping.
Wow- British wines to go with that fantastic British cooking.
** Easy access to superior wine from Bordeaux.
** A taste for the strong wines of Portugal (note how many Port lodges have British names: Cockburn, Croft, Sandeman, Churchill, Taylor, Dow)
** a preference for beer (cheaper, easier to make, went better with British food)
They also ignore that some truly great wines come from regions further north and/or cooler then England (Champagne, Niagra, Rhine).
Sounds to me like vineyards are the cause of global warming especially in the US where vineyards have increased many fold. Now don't rush to rip out any vines as I need my daily medicinal intake and if it gets any warmer I will be able to grow my own wine here in the Redwoods... >:o)
But if not they'll they be competing with the French with after-market grape juice containing alcohol.
It's mystifying why growers/winemakers insist on growing pinot noir in the the Leelanau peninsula in northern MI (might as well be Austria) as it is unfit for vinegar.
Yet the tourists still flock and buy enough to keep them in business.
(And speaking of points, you're going to need a lot of them on New Year's Day) </big wink>
I trust the weather will be fine for a good old-fashioned Rose Bowl?
Maybe what they need is the introduction of the Malbec grape.
LOL. Maybe so. But, we did have a hell of a run, didn't we? I enjoyed it all and knew it would end at some point. But I will take solice in:
a record of 57-5 in five seasons. Not bad.
I trust the weather will be fine for a good old-fashioned Rose Bowl?
It always is, or so it seems. I swear, more people decide to move to California on New Year's Day then any other day of the year:
Bob -- Look at that Martha, their wearing Tee shirts!
Martha -- So?
Bob -- It's 12 degrees outside. I spent two freakin hours shovlin so you get get your freakin gum drops for that damned cake and those Yahoo's are wearin freakin shorts!!
Martha -- Your point?
Bob -- We're movin......... This time I mean it!........ we're movin to California.
My thinking is....the more wine, the better. I wish them well.
It won some awards recently as well -
The world raises its glass to England's winemakers
Who needs the Frogs?
Regards, Ivan
False debate - I adamantly refuse to partake in the nonsense and arrogant lie that humans are inducing a natural cycle that is obviously reflected in history per the author's own statements.
It's not nice to fool with Algore's theory of global warming.
ping
Scottish wine is superb.
I like the part in the article about the Roman warming and the Medieval warming periods. Apparently the Romans caused the first one and those technologically superior Medieval's caused the second. And of course those mean and nasty Americans caused the current warming trend.
I can't fit all that wine in the Gallardo, need an SUV. :o)
"Sounds to me like vineyards are the cause of global warming"
Sorry, but you are wrong, wrong, wrong. Everyone knows that global warming is caused by cow and sheep "flatulance".
Well, that and all the hot air emenating from the Dhims and Dimo-craps such as big fat Teddy, Jon Francois Carry, Hellary, Chuckie, Joe "that's real hair" Biden, Insano Dean, Babs, Meathead, Clueless Clooney, Haradon, etc., etc., etc.
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