Wine 101: Cool-climate vs warm-climate wine

You know those friends who spend all summer complaining about the heat and waiting impatiently for cold, cold winter to come back? Or the ones who fly to some sunny Greek island as soon as the needle drops below 20 degrees here? Well, it turns out some of us have more in common with grapes than we’d probably like to admit. 

See, wine grapes can also be picky when it comes to the weather. Some grapes prefer to grow only in certain climates (and the worst offenders like pinot noir throw proper tantrums when you try to force the issue), while others are pretty chill no matter where they grow. All up, it can make a big difference to the flavours and style of the wine in your glass.

If you’ve ever heard terms like ‘warm climate’ or ‘cool climate’ in a wine’s description, that’s what this is all about. Climate is kind of a big deal in the wine world, with the right growing conditions turning out stunning wines that, honestly, taste like that climate. Here’s what’s going on.

As a general guide, wine-growing countries like France, Germany and Canada, for example, are all pretty much cool climates, while others like us here in Australia and the US have a spread of both warm and cool. These sorts of generalisations are handy, but it’s worth keeping in mind that factors like elevation, rainfall patterns, cloud cover, wind and ocean currents can all change a local climate, too. Even within a region known for being a certain climate, there’s plenty of room for variability – AKA microclimates. 

Ignoring those microclimates for a minute, classic warm-climate wine areas include the Barossa Valley here in Australia, Mendoza in Argentina, southern Italy and much of Spain. Cool-climate regions include Victoria’s Yarra Valley, the Willamette Valley in Oregon, Central Otago in New Zealand and Burgundy in France. 

It’s also worth noting there are all sorts of terms for wine-climate zones that fall in, and around, the broad labels of warm and cool. Climates like Mediterranean, continental and maritime all have specific meanings in wine land, but we’ll cover those another day.

A wine’s flavours, textures and aromas can all change depending on whether the grapes were grown in warm or cool conditions. Here’s what that looks like:

• Warm climate: Grapes get riper in warm weather than they do in cool weather, so they produce more sugar and a whole bunch of different flavours – mostly big, rich, fruity flavours. And, because warm climate grapes have more sugar, they tend to be higher in alcohol (since yeast converts sugar to alcohol during fermentation). Warm-climate wines tend to be lower in acidity, too.
   

• Cool climate: On the other hand, grapes grown in cool-climate regions don’t get as ripe, meaning they have less sugar, so tend to be a touch lower in alcohol and not as overtly fruity as their warm-climate brothers and sisters. These wines are more likely to be crisp and elegant, with a higher acidity and more tart or zippy fruit flavours. 

Armed with this sort of info, you can just about guess if the wine you’re drinking is from a cool or warm climate. It’s not an exact science, but alcohol concentration is a good tell – anything above 14% for a red wine is almost definitely warm climate, while under 14% is likely to be from a cool climate. This can really depend on the grape, though, so it’s no guarantee.

Another good way to tell whether your wine is from a warm or cool climate is by tasting it yourself (or, short of that, reading the handy blurb on the back of the label). Like a little wine-loving Sherlock Holmes, you can use clues about taste, texture and aroma to tell you what sort of climate the wine came from – you just need to know the lingo. 

Warm-climate terms:

• Jammy

• Ripe

• Full

• Rich

• Robust

• Blackberry

• Plum

• Stone fruit

• Dried fruits

Cool-climate terms:

• Tart

• Crisp

• Elegant

• Fresh

• Cranberry 

• Raspberry

• Sour cherry

• Green apple 

• Black pepper

• Forest floor

Some grapes are happy to grow anywhere at all. Others… not so much. Here’s a non-exhaustive list of grapes by their climate preference. 

Warm climate:

• Shiraz

• Grenache

• Fiano

• Cabernet sauvignon

• Sangiovese

• Tempranillo

• Viognier

Cool climate:

• Pinot noir

• Gamay

• Riesling

• Sauvignon blanc

• Pinot gris/grigio

• Gewurztraminer

• Merlot

• Cabernet franc

Both:

Some grapes actually do pretty well in any climate – usually, they shift and morph and produce very different wines depending on those climatic conditions. These chameleons include chardonnay (which is grown nearly everywhere a vineyard has been planted) and shiraz, which, despite being put in the ‘warm climate’ section above, can definitely grow well in cool climates. In Australia, we tend to call this version of shiraz ‘syrah’, but not always.