Speaking of which: do the benefits of global warming -- if it exists -- outweigh the risks?Now today, this from The WSJ article on grapes, wines, and the Mosel River / Valley in Germany, near the French frontier:
Some Mosel vineyards, such as the famed Bernkasteler Doctor, are nearly 100 years old, while others are quite new. There has been a good deal of planting in the region of late, particularly of non-Riesling grapes. The day after my visit, Mr. Selbach was planting Pinot Noir, which has become more common in the Mosel recently thanks to a warming trend. “Nothing has changed in the Mosel,” he said. But then he allowed, “The climate has gotten better.”
The weather was certainly warm the week of my late-April visit, which happened to coincide with spargelzeit (asparagus season). This season is short—April-June—so every restaurant around had at least one and often two or three asparagus dishes on the menu.
When I arrived at the Zeltinger Hof Gasthaus des Rieslings, the modest but charming hotel where I stayed, I found the proprietor, Markus Reis, laboring over a large pile of asparagus, shaving the thick stalks down to a more manageable size. (I found him repeating the task at breakfast time the following morning and again later that day.)The same is being said of North Dakota and Montana. North Dakota is growing more corn, and Montana wheat production is increasing -- some say due to changing weather. It's all good.
Especially the wine.
I learned to love asparagus after living in Germany.
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