In Vino, Veritas

LP

Fire & Wine

By Sassy Pellizzari

This summer we are seeing a global upsurge in traveling, increased airline cancellations, delays and disappointments, and record-breaking temperatures causing droughts and fires. We just returned from a family trip to our home in Tuscany. In the rolling hills of olive trees and tidy rows of vines, it was as excruciatingly hot, humid and dry, just as it was here in Pinehurst. Summer 2022 in Europe is being referred to as a “heat apocalypse.”

We spent the first part of our trip visiting winemaker friends on the coast of Bolgheri at Podere Sapaio, and inland on the hills of Montalcino at Le Ragnaie. We then made our way to Forte dei Marmi, a fashionable and adorably popular beach town in Versilia, on the Tuscan coast, about an hour and a half outside of Florence.

On the drive there we passed an industrial zone just off of the highway. We passed some famous headquarters, such as Gucci, where I worked for many years, but also various factories producing items such as toilet paper, tissues, mattresses and textiles. Up ahead we saw what looked like a factory with huge, thick billowing grey smoke. We were appalled at how this amount of air pollution could even be legal!

As we kept driving closer, our GPS was telling us to go in a direction that I knew was not right. After all, I lived here many years and drove this road frequently. I ignored the directional robot, assuming that I knew better, and took the road I knew. But as we got closer we realized a lot more was happening than just air pollution. As soon as we got off the highway exit, we discovered that the road was closed because of a massive wildfire.

We were right in the middle of Italy’s fire season, which came earlier than usual this year. All over Europe—countries such as France, Spain, Portugal and Greece—has had many acres of land burned and thousands of people evacuated with, sadly, many lives lost.

Earlier this month, the Italian government declared

a severe drought emergency in several northern regions, including Piemonte, famous for Barolo, and Friuli, in the far northeast. Heat was also taking a toll in southern Italy, where growers estimated it will cause a 25 percent decrease in yields. In central Italy, the fire devastated between 1,200 and 1,700 acres just in one region in Tuscany alone, the Maremma. The particular blaze that we witnessed as we were driving burned at least 1,600 acres.

Winemakers worry this will lower yields greatly because even if a fire doesn’t burn vines, smoke from nearby flames can ruin crops for miles. When heavy smoke hangs over vines for days, it can cause smoke taint in the grapes, which gives wines an ashy taste.

In addition, loss of vegetation as a result of intensely burning fires can expose soil to erosion. Following such a fire, runoff on denuded slopes can cause ravaging floods and debris flows, which may damage structures, roads, trails, water reservoirs (putting community water supplies at risk), and harm critical wildlife habitat. These adverse impacts can continue to occur for years after the fires are extinguished.

Winemakers also must take steps to restore the soil and habitat of vineyards post-fire. Some of the vineyards are hundreds of years old, and it is necessary to control invasive species that may overtake burned ground and threaten growth before the vegetation has a chance to reestablish.

Once a rare occurrence, extreme fires are now becoming more frequent and they are lasting longer worldwide. The destructive blazes are driven in part by climate change and environmental groups insist that more money needs to be spent on preventing fires rather than putting them out. A recent report found that Greece, Spain, Portugal, Italy and France were spending as much as 80 percent of available funds on suppression and just 20 percent on prevention.

As I write this, there was hope on the horizon as there were some light rains the past few days and forecasts were calling for more. It’s impossible to rightly predict how these weather extremes will affect the wines. The winemakers will, as always, work around Mother Nature, likely by harvesting the grapes earlier than planned or fine-tuning the aging process to ensure the quality and taste of this vintage.

As for future harvests, winemakers continue to push for ways to sustain growth, by changing lifestyles and using renewable energies. Fire prevention and education is essential together with living a sustainable lifestyle. This is something we can all have a hand in helping, to ensure a promising future for wines and the world. PL

Sassy Pellizzari lived in Italy for more than 13 years, where she developed a passion for and knowledge of Italian wines. She and her husband, Paolo, are the owners of Bacco Selections, a Pinehurst-based company specializing in fine wine importing and distributing.

Kelli Wofford, VMD Erin Barney, DVM Kelli Wofford, VMD Erin Barney, DVM Erin Barney, DVM • Danielle Moore, DVM Donald Kettelkamp, DVM

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