Grape picking in the southern hemisphere: fire, drought and protest

Australia's winegrowers are concerned about the smoke that is caused by bushfires. The consequences are still unclear, although grape harvesting has begun in parts of the southern hemisphere. Other growing areas such as South Africa or Chile have other problems.

Johannesburg (dpa) - Wine lovers all over the world have to prepare for some surprises with the current vintage. A month before the opening of the ProWein trade fair in Düsseldorf, many producers of the fine wines in the southern hemisphere are under severe pressure.

Bush fires in Australia, protests in Chile, drought and chronic power cuts in South Africa make life difficult for the winegrowers there. They are causing a shortage of supply - this also threatens slightly rising consumer prices. At least that is the first forecast of the winegrowers in South Africa after the start of the grape harvest.

According to the industry association Vinpro, the harvest volume there is likely to be below the average of the past five years. "Initial reports from the producers indicate excellent quality," said Maryna Calow, spokeswoman for the marketing company Wines of South Africa (Wosa). Due to the prolonged drought and the recent large number of power cuts, the Cape winemakers have complained about falling income and lower production volumes in recent years - in 2019, exports fell by 24 percent to 320 million liters.

Thanks to higher prices, they are now slowly returning to the profit zone. Many vintners have been reluctant to renew their vines in the past, but some of them have become more experimental. "The Cape wines are better than ever today - the winegrowers have become more confident, courageous and innovative", confirms Petra Mayer from the South Africa Wine Information. The scene has become more dynamic in recent years - in addition to classics, there are now more complex wines from younger, independent winegrowers. With a view to climate change, some have long experimented with more heat-resistant grape varieties or moved to higher regions.

In Australia, on the other hand, there is concern that the strong smoke development from the bush fires could have negatively influenced the aromas of the vines. By contrast, hardly any of the 150,000 hectares of cultivated area was directly affected by the fires. "The smoke will potentially have a bigger impact," says Tony Battaglene of the National Wine Association. But it was still too early to speculate about the extent. Anita Poddar believes that too. "Smoky flavors may be popular in whiskey, but not in wine," said the spokeswoman for the marketing company Wine Australia.

The Hunter Valley cultivation area is particularly affected by the strong smoke development, while the Adelaide Hills region is particularly affected by the fire. Australia exported 1.2 billion liters of wine last year, of which 801 million liters worth $ 1.3 billion was exported. Germany is the fifth largest customer.

In Argentina there are no official estimates for the coming harvest yet. However, various winegrowers already assume that the quality of the harvest will be good and quantitative. With 11.8 million hectoliters, the country is the sixth largest wine producer in the world and employs around 100,000 people with annual sales of over $ 800 million. Grapes such as Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Syrah and Merlot are grown in the Mendoza, San Juan, La Rioja and Salta regions in the northwest of the country.

"We will have a very good harvest," Marcelo Belmonte of the Grupo Peñaflor recently told the Clarín newspaper. "At the moment we are very optimistic about the quality." Here, too, the climate has recently been favorable after a severe drought two years ago with high losses for agriculture. However, Argentina is currently suffering from a severe economic and financial crisis. The region now wants to support the winegrowers with state loans.

In Chile, which was characterized by months of protests, it was recently very dry, and the spring was quite cool. "There is a large water deficit, but so far we have not noticed any negative effects," said the chief oenologist at the Santa Carolina winery, emphasizing: "We hope that it will be a great year with a good harvest and excellent wines."