We explored cool climate wines, and now we’re going to tackle warm climates.

Warm climate regions have more consistent temperatures throughout the year, and the slow drop off from summer to fall gives grapes the opportunity to become fully ripe. These grapes produce wines with fuller body and flavors.

Because grapes ripen faster in warm climates, they accumulate more sugars, which result in higher alcohol levels during fermentation and darker fruit flavors like plums, blueberries, blackberries. These wines can even exhibit chocolate notes.

Well-known warmer regions include:

• Mediterranean Sea — Southern France, Spain, and Greece
• South Australia
• Argentina
• Much of California
• South Africa

The grapes and styles from these warm regions include robust Shiraz from Barossa, rich southern Rhône Grenache-Syrah-Mourvèdre blends, dense Malbec from Uco Valley, and boozy Zinfandel from California’s Lodi.

Challenges

Wine grape growers in warmer climates face certain challenges:

• It is a struggle to retain acidity in the grapes—which dips as sugar accumulates
• It’s difficult to keep these wines tasting fresh, rather than stewed, shapeless, or flabby
• These grapes tend to have thicker skins, which contribute more tannin, but give growers a burden to ensure the resulting wines don’t need decades of aging

In the winery, steps can be employed to help these issues, like the addition of acid and lowering alcohol levels. These are controversial yet common practices in large commercial wineries, however, most winemakers prefer to achieve balance in the vineyard.

Do you prefer cool climate or warm climate wines?

Cheers!

Sources:
Wine Enthusiast
Wine Folly