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Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

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Old Aug 26th 2007, 2:15 pm
  #1  
Earl Evleth
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Posts: n/a
Default Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

" Even my father is saying: 'What the hell has gone wrong with the world?'"

Blame the anti-global warming idiots

****


Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes
Chicago Tribune
August 26, 2007

GROTTAFERRATA, Italy - Patrizia Filippi has no degree in meteorology or any
idea how to calculate what scientists call extreme weather change. But the
43-year-old grape picker has been working this area's silky, volcanic soil
for nearly three decades, and she knows what she sees:

This is an early harvest unlike anything that Italy, or any generation in
her family, has experienced in memory.

"I'm a bit scared," Filippi said, pulling and snipping a thick, juicy bunch
of white grapes from the vines of the Castel de Paolis estate. "I've never
picked grapes this early in the season. We're used to picking grapes in
October. That's when the grape festivals are. Even my father is saying:
'What the hell has gone wrong with the world?'"


The grapes in Lazio region, around Rome, are ripening at least 20 days
early. In the northern region of Veneto and Trentino, the home of refreshing
Prosecco and other sparkling wines, the grapes were ready to pick in early
August, three to four weeks early. In Sicily, there is a rush on now to find
seasonal workers: Red grapes are primed to ripen in early September, a month
early.

It might be a simple climate quirk or even a cyclical pattern, but some
growers across this lush agricultural region are ready to believe that
global warming is taking a toll on their traditions and business. Two heat
waves across southeastern Europe in June and July broke all records;
Bulgaria suffered the worst, with the temperature climbing to 113 degrees
Fahrenheit on July 23.

Temperatures in Italy, Spain and Greece also soared, with utilities and
transportation links suffering disruptions and delays from the heat. In
Italy, the summer of 2007, a strong hot season with little rain, comes
almost too close for comfort with the deadly memory of 2003.

That summer was brutal: Unrelenting high temperatures that August, many
days over 100 degrees, left thousands of people dead, particularly the
vulnerable elderly, across Europe.

For the Santarelli family, the owners of the rambling fields of Castel de
Paolis that bear fruit for Frascati, chardonnay and sauvignon blanc wines,
this year's early harvest has its surprises.

Fabrizio Santarelli, who oversees the estate, had to leave his family
vacation in southern Italy to ensure smooth work on the first days of
harvest. Still, he and his father, Giulio, were delighted by their bounty.
The grape harvest is smaller, but the quality of the fruit is rich, more
flavorful and sweet, they said.

The heat hastened the ripening, and the lack of rain intensified the
natural sugars, they said. The constant sea breeze in these hills helped
modulate the temperature. The wines of 2007, and the wine from this land,
which rests within the ancient seven hills of Rome, will be special.

"We haven't had rain since the middle of May, and all that heat went into
the grape," said Fabrizio, who at age 44 is among the new generation of
winemakers in the Lazio region. "The bunches are arriving very ripe and very
clean. The quality is very high."

Castel de Paolis, a vineyard for generations that exports about 5 percent
of its wines to the United States, is among 30 vintners in the Lazio region
looking for ways to improve and refine its table wines. In 1991, Fabrizio
persuaded his father to pull up acres of old vines and plant grape varieties
from France alongside the long-favored Frascati.

Today, Castel de Paolis has won kudos within some Italian wine circles for
its more distinctive blends.

Experts are yet unsure about the early harvest. Attilio Scienza, a
professor of horticulture at the University of Milan with an expertise in
vineyards, has advised the Santarelli family on how to experiment with new
varieties of grapes.

Last week, looking at the harvest, he was cautious about blaming global
warming - and the effects of human beings on the environment - for the
change.

"There are records of early harvest across history," Scienza said, and
those early harvests can have some effect on how growers look at the next
season. If the pattern continues, he said, "this will likely change the
variety of grapes in Europe. Growers will have to find grapes that fit the
weather cycle."

Robert Stefanski, an agricultural meteorologist with the World
Meteorological Organization, a United Nations agency based in Geneva, said
that no one could say whether Italy's early harvest is a sign of global
warming. What is happening in Italy might be a weather cycle, and there is,
he said, "a difference between climate and weather."

But the example also falls in what Stefanski said is a 30-year trend of
warmer temperatures in the world, "and crops are responding to that."

In May, the U.N.'s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published its
fourth report, warning that global warming would increase the number of
extreme weather events. Its experts have said 2007, so far, has been an
active year for such weather, with unprecedented floods in England, high
temperatures in Europe and record storms in China and East Asia.

If summers in Italy continue to simmer, though, the Santarellis and their
crew of grape-pickers said they might see other traditions shift. While some
workers were wide-eyed about this year's harvest, Fabrizio was sanguine
about its opportunities.

"The first week of October was harvest time and the first Sunday of October
was always the day of the Grape Harvest Festival," he said. "OK, so now we
can call it the 'New Wine Festival.'"
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 4:17 pm
  #2  
Knight Of The Road
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

"Earl Evleth" <[email protected]> wrote




> Blame the anti-global warming idiots
>
> ****



What exactly are "anti-global warming idiots"?



--
Regards, Vince.

Long Distance Diary (NEW! 24th August 2007)
Sittingbourne- Banff- Gdansk http://tinyurl.com/28n7kq
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 5:01 pm
  #3  
Earl Evleth
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

On 26/08/07 18:17, in article [email protected], "Knight Of The
Road" <[email protected]> wrote:

>
> What exactly are "anti-global warming idiots"?

Idiots, exactly.
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 5:48 pm
  #4  
Knight Of The Road
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

"Earl Evleth" <[email protected]> wrote


>Idiots, exactly.




People who are anti-global warming are idiots?


--
Regards, Vince.

Long Distance Diary (NEW! 24th August 2007)
Sittingbourne- Banff- Gdansk http://tinyurl.com/28n7kq
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 6:08 pm
  #5  
Go Fig
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

Your selective postings are so transparent...

You ignored my recent challenge about the NASA so-called 'models' being
nothing more than "What-if" scenarios. I have been saying this for
years here.

What is the hottest year(s) on record for the U.S. ?

By Andrew Bolt
Thursday, August 09, 2007 at 10:02am

Oops. It turns out that 1998 wasn�t the hottest year on record for the
US, after all.
Global warming must be working backwards, because NASA�s Goddard
Institute for Space Studies, having fixed some calculating errors, has
discovered that the hottest year was in fact 1934.
That�s not all, as Steve McIntyre explains:

Four of the top 10 are now from the 1930s: 1934, 1931, 1938 and 1939,
while only 3 of the top 10 are from the last 10 years (1998, 2006,
1999). Several years (2000, 2002, 2003, 2004) fell well down the
leaderboard, behind even 1900.
The new leader-board of the hottest recorded years in the US:
1934
1998
1921
2006
1931
1999
1953
1990
1938
1939
These figures apply only to the US, and the corrections - says McIntyre
- do �not make any real difference to the world rankings�, which
generally put 1998 as the world�s hottest year since records were kept.
But two things should be noted.
First, that the most basic calculations behind the global warming
hysteria can be screwed up, and stay undetected for years.
Second, that NASA quietly changed these figures without any of the
press releases and alarmist reports that usually follow the discovery
of some data that will feed the fear.






In article <C2F77E6E.ED2D9%[email protected]>, Earl Evleth
<[email protected]> wrote:

> On 26/08/07 18:17, in article [email protected], "Knight Of The
> Road" <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> >
> > What exactly are "anti-global warming idiots"?
>
> Idiots, exactly.
>
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 8:06 pm
  #6  
-Magda
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

On Sun, 26 Aug 2007 18:48:35 +0100, in rec.travel.europe, "Knight Of The Road"
<[email protected]> arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:

...
... "Earl Evleth" <[email protected]> wrote
...
...
... >Idiots, exactly.
...
...
...
...
... People who are anti-global warming are idiots?

I think he means "people who deny that global warming is a fact".
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 8:26 pm
  #7  
Knight Of The Road
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

"Magda" <[email protected]> wrote

> I think he means "people who deny that global warming is a fact".
>



I read that scientists are predicting that the world will start to cool in
2012 for the next 50 years or so.

Example...
http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/n...6-8af9cf743c95

I remember that in the 1970's we had a few cooler than average years and
some folk said we were "entering a new ice age".


I also remember that in the mid-1980's it was commonly stated that "by the
early 1990's, every family in the country will be touched by AIDS. At the
time I said that was complete rubbish, and I was frequently called an idiot
for saying that. But time proved me right.

Would you not be prepared to consider that the present increase in
temperatures might just be part of the earth's natural cycle and ephemeral?



--
Regards, Vince.

Long Distance Diary (NEW! 24th August 2007)
Sittingbourne- Banff- Gdansk http://tinyurl.com/28n7kq
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 8:32 pm
  #8  
Knight Of The Road
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

"Doesn't Frequently Mop" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> wrote

> Might I suggest adding Earl and Runge to your killfile? They are
> stalwarts of the irritating and irrelevant.




Thanks for the advice, but there's nothing I enjoy more than a battle of
wits with an unarmed opponent ;-)


--
Regards, Vince.

Long Distance Diary (NEW! 24th August 2007)
Sittingbourne- Banff- Gdansk http://tinyurl.com/28n7kq
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 8:35 pm
  #9  
Doesn't Frequently Mop
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

Make credence recognised that on Sun, 26 Aug 2007 18:48:35 +0100,
"Knight Of The Road" <[email protected]> has scripted:

>
>"Earl Evleth" <[email protected]> wrote
>
>
>>Idiots, exactly.
>
>
>
>
>People who are anti-global warming are idiots?

Might I suggest adding Earl and Runge to your killfile? They are
stalwarts of the irritating and irrelevant.
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 8:50 pm
  #10  
Runge3
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: evleth's slaves entertaining the master of all cretins

Oh right on topic in this group, chatting with the finest cretin of them all
Not better than martin

"Knight Of The Road" <[email protected]> a �crit dans le message de
news:[email protected]...
>
>
>
>
>
> "Magda" <[email protected]> wrote
>
>> I think he means "people who deny that global warming is a fact".
>>
>
>
>
> I read that scientists are predicting that the world will start to cool in
> 2012 for the next 50 years or so.
>
> Example...
> http://www.canada.com/nationalpost/n...6-8af9cf743c95
>
> I remember that in the 1970's we had a few cooler than average years and
> some folk said we were "entering a new ice age".
>
>
> I also remember that in the mid-1980's it was commonly stated that "by the
> early 1990's, every family in the country will be touched by AIDS. At the
> time I said that was complete rubbish, and I was frequently called an
> idiot for saying that. But time proved me right.
>
> Would you not be prepared to consider that the present increase in
> temperatures might just be part of the earth's natural cycle and
> ephemeral?
>
>
>
> --
> Regards, Vince.
>
> Long Distance Diary (NEW! 24th August 2007)
> Sittingbourne- Banff- Gdansk http://tinyurl.com/28n7kq
>
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 8:51 pm
  #11  
Runge3
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

Runge says a lot of nasty words in your direction
Sorry I'm bothering you in your inane and constant OT chitchat

"Doesn't Frequently Mop" <deepfreudmoors@eITmISaACTUALLYiREAL!l.nu> a �crit
dans le message de news:[email protected]...
> Make credence recognised that on Sun, 26 Aug 2007 18:48:35 +0100,
> "Knight Of The Road" <[email protected]> has scripted:
>
>>
>>"Earl Evleth" <[email protected]> wrote
>>
>>
>>>Idiots, exactly.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>People who are anti-global warming are idiots?
>
> Might I suggest adding Earl and Runge to your killfile? They are
> stalwarts of the irritating and irrelevant.
> --
> ---
> DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
> ---
> --
 
Old Aug 26th 2007, 8:52 pm
  #12  
Runge3
Guest
 
Posts: n/a
Default Re: Italy alarmed at early harvest of wine grapes

Who cares
They all come out when evleth pollutes

"Go Fig" <[email protected]> a �crit dans le message de
news:260820071108588516%[email protected]...
> Your selective postings are so transparent...
>
> You ignored my recent challenge about the NASA so-called 'models' being
> nothing more than "What-if" scenarios. I have been saying this for
> years here.
>
> What is the hottest year(s) on record for the U.S. ?
>
> By Andrew Bolt
> Thursday, August 09, 2007 at 10:02am
>
> Oops. It turns out that 1998 wasn�t the hottest year on record for the
> US, after all.
> Global warming must be working backwards, because NASA�s Goddard
> Institute for Space Studies, having fixed some calculating errors, has
> discovered that the hottest year was in fact 1934.
> That�s not all, as Steve McIntyre explains:
>
> Four of the top 10 are now from the 1930s: 1934, 1931, 1938 and 1939,
> while only 3 of the top 10 are from the last 10 years (1998, 2006,
> 1999). Several years (2000, 2002, 2003, 2004) fell well down the
> leaderboard, behind even 1900.
> The new leader-board of the hottest recorded years in the US:
> 1934
> 1998
> 1921
> 2006
> 1931
> 1999
> 1953
> 1990
> 1938
> 1939
> These figures apply only to the US, and the corrections - says McIntyre
> - do �not make any real difference to the world rankings�, which
> generally put 1998 as the world�s hottest year since records were kept.
> But two things should be noted.
> First, that the most basic calculations behind the global warming
> hysteria can be screwed up, and stay undetected for years.
> Second, that NASA quietly changed these figures without any of the
> press releases and alarmist reports that usually follow the discovery
> of some data that will feed the fear.
>
>
>
>
>
>
> In article <C2F77E6E.ED2D9%[email protected]>, Earl Evleth
> <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> On 26/08/07 18:17, in article [email protected], "Knight Of
>> The
>> Road" <[email protected]> wrote:
>>
>> >
>> > What exactly are "anti-global warming idiots"?
>>
>> Idiots, exactly.
>>
 

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