DAN'S WINE BLOG-DRY ARGUMENT

Friday, September 23, 2022

?This week I am covering a few interesting items from around the world.

?PERSPECTIVE:?In July 2019 I visited the Loire Valley on behalf of Winestate Magazine and was really impressed by the luscious greenery of the region and its magnificent fast flowing Loire River that was brimming at its banks. Below is an image of what the river looked like in July 2022. This is the first time in recorded history that it has dried up completely.?Just stop and imagine how many gazillions of litres of rainwater have gone AWOL for this to occur, then imagine how dry and arid the surrounding land must be and the impact on the local vineyards. This isn’t just a drought, it is a catastrophic, global warming induced disaster!

?Although I often have a go at the French wine industry (our fiercest rivals), I would not wish this on anyone and I pray for long overdue relief for them. Poor bastards!

?Currently, most Aussie winemakers are chuffed and giving thanks for the abundant winter rain that we have been blessed with. It has not only re-filled dams but also given the water table a bit of a helping hand. Hopefully, despite the Bureau of Meteorology now telling us that we are in for another “La Ni?a” summer, this scenario will not deteriorate into vineyards awash or heavy rain at harvest time. Many people do not register that global warming can mean floods just as much as it means droughts.

?CAN IT:?Wine in a can has been growing rapidly in most wine drinking countries due to its convenience and practicality.?However, the latest news out of the USA (largest canned wine market in the world) has the can producers saying that they have experienced a 3% reduction in orders over the last few months after having an increase in sales of 11% last year. As yet they cannot offer a reason for this, but they are investigating as to why the sudden downturn after a number of years of double-digit increases in sales.

?REALLY OLD WINE:?In the city of Speyer, in Germany, the tomb of a noble Roman from around 325-359AD was discovered to have 16 bottles of wine interred in there. The bottles are around 1.5 litres in size and much to the surprise of the archaeologists, one of them is still sealed and has wine inside it – thus making this the oldest ever bottle of wine at about 1,700-years-old.

?Scientists believe that the “wine” is a blend of local grapes, olive oil and herbs. They believe that whilst the contents of the bottle will be a sludgy substance which has lost all its alcohol, it would be safe to drink and it has been sealed and therefore could not become contaminated. It would most likely taste disgusting but it would be safe to drink – any volunteers?

?The oldest drinkable wine that I have heard of before this was a German white wine from the stellar vintage of 1747 that was opened and consumed in the mid-1980s and was palatable for a few minutes after the bottle was opened and poured.

?Not quite in the same league but I celebrated my 40th, 50th and 60th birthdays with red wines from my vintage (and every bottle was drinkable). ?I still have a bottle of Wynn’s Hermitage awaiting my 70th birthday in a few years’ time along with bottles of three different Ports from my year including a Portuguese Vintage Port.

?Well that’s it for another week, please stay safe and #chooseaustralianwine and where possible try #emergingvarieties.