Winemakers adapt to climate by moving states

Searching for a cooler climate,
Victorian winemakers
 are migrating to Tasmania.

They are one of the oldest families of wine in Australia, and after more than 120 years in Victoria, Brown Brothers' decision to expand outside of its traditional growing area because of warming temperatures is paying off.

Warm springs and hot summers can affect grape quality and produce lower-quality, more alcoholic wine.

Wine companies big and small are scrambling to adapt, with vineyard managers changing things like the way they prune, how they sit the vines on the trellis, different grape varieties, and the location of vineyards.

Company chief Ross Brown said he was ecstatic about the company's Tasmanian purchase, which includes a vineyard and winery in the state's north and a vineyard on the east coast.

It secures the company's supply of cool climate grapes.

Read the ABC story - “Warming temperatures spark 'race to Tasmania' for winemakers escaping heat.”

(Migration driven by climate change can be seen in a few places around the world – the Syrian diaspora for example is commonly thought to driven by war, a war which is the manifestation of drought, which in turn is a product of climate change – and now are seeing the migration of winemakers from an increasingly hot South Australia to a cooler Tasmania. It is a measured migration compared to the chaotic exit from Syria, but it is still a move driven by climate disruption – Robert McLean).