Medieval wine records tracking the sweetness of must are being examined for evidence of changes in the climate. It turns out that the sweetness of wine is a better indicator of climate conditions than tree rings. And the records date back to the 1400s. The sweetness of must correlates with climate better than harvest dates, which are also indicative of climate trends.
It is not looking like a promising year for us this year. So far, the average temperature in July is only 13.7C when the LTA is 15.4. And as we have only had 11.8 mm of rain so far in July in Newport, the gardens are suffering, as are the grapes. They are tiny at this stage. All the fruit is tiny. The LTA for July is 100.9 mm. Last year we had 206.8 mm in July, a complete washout. It's the variability of extremes that may kill us. Let's hope conditions still have time to improve.
For more insight into the history of winemaking, check out this entry in the blog of the Inquisitive Vintner.
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