It has been another unnerving year in the vineyards of Italy, the current world leader in wine production. The River Po has struggled to remain wet. A glacier collapsed in the Dolomites. The Italian government declared last summer that drought had produced a state of emergency in five northern regions, citing climate change as a culprit.
In 2021, even as exports hit a record $7 billion, overall production was down about 9%. Still, Filippo Mazzei, who produces wines at Castello di Fonterutoli in Tuscany, is not especially worried. The wine business is highly vulnerable to even subtle changes in climate.
