Monday, April 16, 2012

Grape Growing - Cool Climate vs. Warm Climate


Grapes grown in warm climates versus cool climates present winemakers with different winemaking issues. In warm climates, because of heat, there is usually no problem getting enough sugar in the grapes and higher potential alcohol results. However there might be problems attaining enough acidity, the sour component. In cool climates, acid levels are never usually problematic, but sugar content may be lower due to cooler temperatures. So wines produced in warm climates tend to have higher alcohol and lower acid while cool climate wines generally have lower alcohol with higher acid, with some variations according to the growing season. Of course, vineyard location and winemaking tricks can combat this somewhat.

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