Winegrowers see their life's work go up in smoke: "Horrible"

Erik Norbergh/TT 

 

Published 19:30

 

Many vineyards have succumbed to the fires, while others are affected indirectly when the smoke penetrates the skins of the grapes and affects the taste. Photo: Gustav Sjöholm/TT and Emma Da Silva /AP/TT

The smoke from the forest fires currently raging in southwestern France risks having a major impact on wine production.

- It affects the taste, says wine writer Fredrik Schelin.

Since last week, violent forest fires have raged in southwestern France, including in the Pyrénées-Orientales, an area with many vineyards.

While vineyards can prevent the spread by acting as moisture-giving firebreaks, many have succumbed to the flames.

A full 90 percent of Gilles Trouiller's nine-hectare vineyard on the Montalba-le-Château plateau has burned down, writes Le Figaro.

– These are vines that we have been growing for 30 years and that cannot be replaced, Trouiller told the newspaper.

Affected indirectly

Firefighters are currently fighting a forest fire west of the city of Bordeaux, the heart of the famous French wine region of the same name. Most of the region's vineyards are located north and east of the city.

But many vineyards are at risk of being affected indirectly. This is because the smoke from forest fires easily penetrates the skin of the grapes and gives the wine a smoky taste.

– It does not taste pleasant at all. In California and Australia, they have struggled to find ways through different fermentation methods but it cannot be removed, says Fredrik Schelin.

Other winegrowers in the Pyrénées-Orientales tell Le Figaro that they have not yet had time to get an overview of the consequences because their crops are inside the safety barriers.

Fredrik Schelin believes that the economic consequences could be major.

– It will affect in many ways and it is terrible. This is the only income these farmers have, he says.

Wineries are strongly affected by a warmer climate. A few years ago, researchers at the Université de Bordeaux concluded in a study that around 90 percent of all wine production in low-lying areas in countries such as Spain, Italy and Greece is at risk of disappearing towards the end of this century.

A higher average temperature means that the wines are both sweeter and have a higher alcohol content.

Sweden could benefit

“The risk is that they will not be able to make wines of the same quality in the future,” says Lotta Nordmark, who researches fruit and wine production at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences.

In Italy, vineyards are now being moved higher up in the mountains where it is cooler, according to Nordmark. She predicts that climate change will benefit Sweden as a wine country.

“You could probably see vineyards up in northern Sweden in the fairly near future,” she says.

She emphasizes that a prerequisite for this is proximity to water bodies that store heat.