When people begin studying wine, many learners are taught that "wine grape cultivation takes place between 30° and 50° North latitude and 30° and 40° South latitude," aren't they?
Then, when they move on to the chapter dealing with German wines, they likely hear the explanation that "German grape-growing regions are located within the range of 47° to 52° North latitude, which represents the northern limit of viticulture worldwide."
The Northern Limit of Viticulture Has Shifted North
Unfortunately, this information must be considered outdated.
Under the influence of global climate change and warming, grape-growing regions are currently shifting further north and further south. This is a "shift" phenomenon. From a long-term perspective, it is not an "expansion," but that is a separate topic that we will omit here.
Today's theme concerns the changes in grape-growing regions.
Until some time ago, Germany was indeed the northern limit of viticulture worldwide. However, wine grape cultivation has recently begun in southern Sweden, which lies even further north. In other words, Germany is no longer the northernmost region. Rather, Germany's climate is becoming warmer, to the extent that cultivation of grape varieties that were previously impossible to grow is now being attempted.
Changing Methods for Grape Variety Selection
This raises an important question: If the traditional method of vine planting based on latitude guidelines is becoming less viable due to climate change, how should we select grape varieties suitable for a given region? Moreover, how should we make basic judgments about whether grape cultivation is even possible in a particular location?
A solution has already been proposed for this challenge. Through calculations using multiple factors—primarily temperature data over specific periods—it has become possible to determine whether a location is suitable for wine grape cultivation and, furthermore, which grape varieties would be appropriate.
That said, there are many cases where varieties that fall outside these calculation results actually thrive in practice. Ultimately, one might say that if the planted grapes grow successfully, that is sufficient.
