Seriously, we promise that this will be our LAST interview from the II International Conference on Climate and Wine. We realize that we may have exhausted your attention span with this, but we had to at least give you the opportunity to hear our recently edited video clip with Miguel Torres chatting about what Bodegas Torres is doing to be a more sustainable winery. We hope you enjoy the clip!
As we mentioned in one of our first articles debating the merits of the Climate Change and Wine conference, feeling a little frustrated that adaptation was given more weight than prevention, we were left with two predominant voices who appeared to agree that prevention, albeit important, must go hand in hand with adaptation. One Richard Smart, an internationally renowned viticulturalist, suggested that even if we globally cut carbon emissions, it would still take another fifty years before the climate would balance itself out. Hence, he emphasized acceptance toward change, and that we as an industry need to push forward in our research, while investing in adaptive measures now. Some of his suggestions included investing in real estate to ensure a prosperous future, “The warming temperatures are opening up new regions.” These “new” regions lie south of the equator in countries such as Chile, Argentina, Tasmania and New Zealand, where temperature change will be moderate as compared to the northern half of the globe, containing greater land mass and less water to absorb the sun. Cooler and/or higher regions are also worthy of consideration, as is research into varietals that will be better suited to your future regional climate. However, keep in mind that although Richard accepts climate change as inevitable, he also adamantly advocats political activism on behalf of concerned citizens who want to act now.
Miguel Torres, owner of the legendary Spanish winery, Bodegas Torres (podcast with Miguel’s daughter, Mireia) not only agreed wholeheartedly with Richard’s assessment, but has implemented strategic measures to both conserve resources now, while preparing for dramatic changes in the future. Señor Torres made it known that consumption was one of our greatest human faults, driving the climate to change faster than if we used in moderation and shared resources. Hence, he …
