Author(s):
Greg Jones* - Southern Oregon University
Abstract:
While tremendous advances have occurred in spatial climate data products, no large-scale update to our understanding of climate-viticulture structure and suitability for the western US has be done in the last three decades. The goals of this research are to better document the climate structure in wine producing regions throughout California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho making comparisons between regions in the US and elsewhere in the world more realistic. The research utilizes the 1971-2000 PRISM 400m climate grids to assess four climate parameters commonly used to characterize climate suitability for viticulture and wine production: the Winkler Index (degree-days), the Huglin Index, the biologically effective degree-day index, and average growing season temperatures. The data are assessed and depicted as spatial averages of the climate parameters over 135 American Viticultural Areas in the western US. The method takes into account the entire region (not individual stations) and the relative relief of the growing regions to provide a much better representation of the spatial climate suitability in each region. The research also provides the first comprehensive comparison of the Huglin Index in the US and develops greater latitudinal adjustment factor for calculating the index that can be applied elsewhere. The methods developed in this work are also being applied to other wine regions throughout the world (Europe, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and South America) with the goal of producing a world-wide set of similar data in which to make appropriate climate comparisons. Examples and comparisons from other regions will be made.
