Wine in a Changing Climate

As rising temperatures supercharge the UK wine industry, Jaega Wise finds out what this means for winegrowing at home and abroad, and the mixed blessing climate change presents.

She finds out how winegrowers, viticultural scientists and wine trade experts feel about the double-edged sword of climate change, and what the future might look like for the industry both in the UK and further afield.

In Sussex, we hear from winemaking duo Dermot Sugrue and Ana Dogic about their estate Sugrue South Downs, and how warmer temperatures have improved the ripening capacity of the grapes used to make their award-winning sparkling wines – putting them on a par with Champagne according to some.

Wine critic Jancis Robinson has tasted the benefits of climate change on English and Welsh wine over the course of her career, and believes parts of England now have the climate to produce excellent red wines too. Noble Rot’s Dan Keeling, meanwhile, explains why he’s excited for the future of UK sparkling wine, and why some producers now stand their ground next to world-class Champagnes in blind tastings. Viticulture climatologist Dr Alistair Nesbitt shares the findings of a recent study looking at the next two decades of wine production in the UK. He believes we will begin to see more and more UK still white and red wine on shelves in years to come, and argues that sustainable winemaking plays a crucial role in the industry’s response to climate change.

Producer Robbie Armstrong heads to Bordeaux to find out how one of the world’s largest and most famed wine regions is adapting, following a year that saw extreme drought, wildfires and the use of irrigation for the first time in decades. He speaks to a leading researcher at the Institute of Vine and Wine Science about their experimental vineyard, and a winemaker planting grape varieties that are better adapted to rising temperatures.

Presented by Jaega Wise. Produced by Robbie Armstrong.