Marbella listens to Nicolas Joly: " Climate change is allowing vineyards to grow in new regions. "
Nicolas Joly, pioneer winemaker.
“THE SECRET TO A GOOD WINE INVOLVES UNDERSTANDING THE LAWS OF NATURE AND THE EARTH”
With only two weeks to go for the 3rd World Conference on Climate Change and Wine, some of the invited speakers, including Kofi Annan former secretary general for the United Nations, explain their views on climate change. World renowned winemaker Nicolas Joly will be one of the keynote speakers at the conference organized by The Wine Academy. In his speech Joly will explain that the secret to producing great wines is to understand the laws of nature as well as listening to the planet. “Climate change is about awareness and until the wine industry understands and takes action there will not be many positive results”.
Joly is a pioneer of modern viticulture and a world reference on bio-dynamics. He is determined to make a contribution at the Marbella conference by offering solutions for the industry. “Small steps are available to all of us and we are already seeing some results. The use of medicinal plants helps the climate to stay in balance. Willow tree leaves help against drought and the use of silica helps control water excess”. These are just some examples of how plants can help reduce the impact of climate change. This winemaker from the Loire maintains that today’s wineries have two approaches for fighting the climate crisis. One approach involves the use of technology, which will result in artificial flavours and aromas. A more natural approach relies on the capacity of the vine to defend itself and adapt to a changing climate, using bio-dynamics for example.
Another aspect that will be covered at the 3rd Climate Change and Wine Conference is the production of quality wines under the extreme situations resulting from climate change. From this point of view Nicolas Joly emphasizes that there must be a differentiation between “natural wine” and “industrial wine”, as well as “wines made with conventional methods or those made with systems that do not promote excellence in the vineyard”. Joly believes that a “true wine” is the result of the work of nature where the winemaker respects the nuances and characteristics of the soils and climate. He also emphasises that because of climate change there are vineyards growing in regions today were in the past this was unthinkable due to the poor sunlight conditions.
Nicolas Joly is a French producer making some icon wines such as Clos de la Coulée de Serrant and Clos de la Bergerie. He has published several books about bio-dynamics and the production of wines using biodynamic viticulture. His books and articles have been published in more than seven languages all over the world. Joly will join Claude and Lydia Bourguignon as well as Inge Kotze to speak about biodiversity, organic viticulture and bio-dynamics, in a panel to be held on April 14th at the Climate Change Conference.
Tickets to the conference are 50 euros and the dinner plus conference package is 250. More information and reservations: 952 830806.
For online bookings: http://www.climatechangeandwine.com/entradas.php
www.thewineacademy.es – www.spainwines.es – www.cambioclimaticoyvino.com
- Paul Wilcockson LMPA Event photographer/reporter
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