In the minds of most consumers, vineyards are perpetually green with the grapes ripening effortlessly under clear blue skies. But most interested and informed wine lovers appreciate that vineyards are not simply a money making machine, but rather a product of passion and place perpetually at the mercy of weather.

Globalization of French Terroir

One of the most important changes which the great wine boom of the late 20th and early 21st centuries brought was the globalization of the French idea of terroir, or the taste of the place. Regional character and vineyard-specific character became crucial concepts for wine production and marketing everywhere.

The major factors that shape the terroir- like temperature, rainfall, soil type and topography (lie of the land) are well known. Another important factor- wind is perhaps the least understood terroir factor, even though global warming has made it one of the most significant factors.

Gone with the Wind

For the wine industry, wind is a double-edged sword. On the one hand it is the natural air-conditioning for wine regions as diverse as Russian River Valley in California, the Western Cape in South Africa and Great Southern in Western Australia. In each case, it is wind from the ocean to the west-in California from the Pacific, in South Africa from the Atlantic, and in Western Australia from the Indian Ocean. All these regions’ claims to have cool climates are largely based on the cooling effect of the wind. Every grower can claim with some justification that their vineyards are caressed by the wind.

But wind can also be a destructive force. For example, Syrah (Shiraz) is grown in all of the above regions. The new shoots of this variety break rather easily due to strong wind. Of course, when storms hit the vineyards as it did recently in Europe, high winds accompany the rainwater and cause extensive damage. In some of the worst case scenarios vine and consequently wine is gone with the wind- literally.

Eduardo Chadwick-Man Who Harnessed Wind

Chile has a modern tradition of actively using wind to create new terroirs. For instance, the Seña vineyard in the Aconcagua Valley was planted with Cabernet Sauvignon and other red Bordeaux grape varieties by Eduardo Chadwick in 1998. Only 39 kilometers from the Pacific Ocean, the wind e is much stronger here than in the historical Viña Errazuriz vineyards 60- 70 kilometers from the ocean. Chadwick has often said that Seña was planted in the coolest place he could regularly ripen Cabernet Sauvignon.

However, some of Las Pizarras vineyards owned by Eduardo in Errazuriz Winery planted with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah lie as close as 11 kilometers to the Pacific Coast in locations considered too windy to be suitable for viticulture earlier. You can actually taste the wind in these game-changing wines being produced since 2012. They have high natural acidity and low pH previously considered impossible in Chile earlier.

Throwing Caution to the Wind

Winemakers are naturally going full blast to see how much they can play with the wind-especially in Northern Europe. As winegrowing in the Northern Hemisphere extends further north to take advantage of global warming, some of the new locations tend to be close to the North Sea and Baltic Sea.

According to the article published by Messe Dusseldorf- organisers of Prowein, Weingut Balthasar Ress in the Rheingau region in Germany, has planted a vineyard on the island of Sylt, close to the Danish border. This is not only the sunniest location in Germany, but also one of the windiest, making it a high-risk strategy. The early-ripening PIWI (fungal-resistant) Solaris white grape variety was the answer and from 2019 the SÖL Ring Sekt (sparkling wine in Germany)is being produced from these grapes.

PIWI vines have a high resistance to fungal diseases and allow a significant reduction in the use of pesticides, thus protecting the environment. Growing of PIWI wines has been on the rise in recent years, especially in Germany.

‘Gone with the Wind’ is only one of the several Trendy topics that will be talked about in Prowein. Other wine trends covered by ProWein 2025 will include:

• The grapes of (climate) change
• Famous  winds and the wines that grow there
• The New East: Europe and The Caucuses

There will be more than 5,000 exhibitors and a much higher number of visitors at Prowein 2025, at the world’s most relevant trade fairs for wines and spirits. At the 30th edition last year there were 5,400 exhibitors from 65 countries with 300 Masterclasses where topics like the one in this Article will be discussed and debated.

Plan on visiting the Show if you are an active wine professional willing to go a step ahead of your nearest competitor or are just willing to equip yourself with more knowledge and information.

The annual ProWein trade fair in Düsseldorf on 16-18 March, 2025 is one of the wine industry’s most important meeting places. There will be plenty of discussions on various topics including new perspectives on subjects like wind as the terroir.

Subhash Arora