Hmmm, maybe there’s something to that “Wines grown in England during the Medieval Warm Period” after all. I think maybe the French are upset that Scottish wine might be served with kippers rather than truffles. Oh the horror!
From the UK Telegraph:
Best wines will come from Scotland if climate change is not stopped, French chefs say
Prominent French chefs have given warning that the country’s wines will lose their complexity and the best produce will come from Scotland if the effects of climate change are not tackled.
excerpts:
President Nicolas Sarkozy was posed a stark choice: save French wine by clinching a deal at the international climate conference in Copenhagen in December, or see generations of viticulture slowly die out as vineyards cross the Channel and head north.
“As flagships of our common cultural heritage, elegant and refined, French wines are today in danger,” 50 leading names from the world of French wine and food wrote in an open letter. “Marked by higher alcohol levels, over-sunned aromatic ranges and denser textures, our wines could lose their unique soul.”
Among the signatories were Marc Veyrat, a chef with three Michelin stars, Mauro Colagreco, the award-winning chef, and Franck Thomas, who was voted the best sommelier in the world. The message was also supported by a host of domains from Champagne to Languedoc-Roussillon.
Climate change has been blamed for degrading French vineyards, with heatwaves, giant summer hailstorms in Bordeaux and new plant diseases.
The signatories said that if global temperatures rose by more than two per cent before the end of the century, “our soil will not survive” and “wine will travel 1,000 kilometres beyond its traditional limits”.
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Back in ’96 I worked a fire out of Phoenix,really hate that tanker base at Sky harbor.
One, the days were consistently 110+ meaning 120+ on the ramp-and 130+ in the
DC7-which had all the environmental controls taken out.The USFS ramp had put steel plates out so we wouldn’t sink into the ramp.BTW-the Weather SErvice was next door
and the Stevenson Box was right next to the USFS ramp.To this day I hate Gatorade…
We had a problem with #4 and ended up back at Winslow,beatiful, windy cool 97F.
Winslow we never went back…
France? Sounds like a regional change, not a global one.
E.M.Smith (17:27:20)
wonder what the melting temperature is for asphalt…
It’s been close to 20 years since I was actively involved in the highway business, but as I recall the proper mixing temperature for asphalt cement was 300-320 degrees F, although it varied a bit depending on the grade of the material. Part of the design theory of asphalt pavements involves the idea that passing traffic will pull material to the surface to replace what is lost to weathering. Since airport taxiways are subject to much less traffic at lower speeds than highways they may spec a grade with a lower melt point, but I’m only guessing on this since the only runway jobs I was ever involved in were portland concrete. BTW, to give you some idea of what it takes to handle 747s dropping out of the sky, the last runway project i worked on at the Mnlps airport had 39″ of steel reinforced concrete.
To all my English friends, especially the ones in Hartlepool, including you, Mr. Capp….
Where art tho o’ grape,
Grape of English vine?
They glory is now,
And the French do whine.
Pleasure me nose,
With pepper bouquet.
Whilst to the south,
They swig their tart tokay
Oh yea, oh yea,
For our global warming.
And ice free lands,
Of Scottish mooring.
From green of North,
To the white of Dover.
We’ll plant thee vine,
To please the world over.
For the French too long,
Hath claimed a false glory.
The time doth fit,
To bring end to their story.
Where art tho o’ grape,
Grape of English vine?
To thee I sing,
And my tongue doth pine.
Opps, sorry. left of the “U” and thou…
Afghanistan is looking like it will have the best grape harvest in over 35 years, following on the heels of the best wheat harvest in 32 years.
The grapes on my porch here in Kabul are putting a bit of stess on the frame this year. It was a good crop last year, but this year is incredible.
Sadly, they don’t drink their grapes due to the strictures of Islam. (At least not publicly.) I’ll bet they could compare well to Spanish wines if they had a mind to produce wine.
Oh, and our temps in Kabul this year hit 37°C once this summer, never any higher. We still have a spot of snow in the mountains west of the city and the temps have already fallen off to daytime highs at 32°C and night time lows of about 16°C. It could be a cold winter this year.
I guess the French would be stuck with growing Italian, Californian, Australian and Chilean types – it might be a step up.
Everyone is missing the true danger here, what could this do to the whisky?
So there I was, flying into Paris, this past winter. The snow cover started at the English Channel and covered everything to CDG. If anything, they’ll be lamenting the fact they can only make Gewurtztraminer in the midst of some horrid future age … LOL!
The telephone sanitizers agree with the French chefs.
And I guess if it gets a bit colder, then the best wines will come from southern Italy, Spain and North Africa?
Tsk, tsk: nature’s capricious wind of fortune, eh?
REf; wine in Scotland. Well, it may come to you as a surprice but a couple a weeks ago I tasted a locally produced wine here in Sweden (Öland). This is MUCH further north than any part of Scotland. I can tell you: it tasted excellent and is a fully commercial product. (Mind you, not grown in greenhouses!) I think French wines are extremly overrated anyway, so who will be sorry?
D. King (11:49:26) :
“Save a wee dram for me Jimmy, and Lang may yer lum reek!”
Slainthe!
And what a wonderful Scottish phrase! Let that be the deniers battle cry! “Lang may yer lum reek” indeed.
(The following is a translation from the Scots for the benefit of our English and American viewers: “I hope that your chimney belches out thick black smoke for a very long time”.)
One of my brothers is a fellow beer and whisky “connoisseur” and his favourite phrase is: “I’m not as thunk as drinkle peep am I”. I don’t know where he got it from unless it was a moment of beer-fuelled inspiration.
DaveE,
since you know very well Decimomannu, I hope you can help me.
I’ve almost concluded the sourveillance of Italian WMO stations, but I couldn’t find the Decimomannu Stevenson Screen by means of google maps.
May you suggest in wich sector I should search or, better, take a photo and send it to me?
Any piece of information would be much appreciated. Thank you.
I live in France and just watched la Météo on TV;
There is an anti-sufflé approaching the Atlantic Coast which will bring outbreaks of foie gras and scattered truffles, to the Sud-ouest, followed by isolated rillettes, déglacé intervals and more persistent crêpe later.
Outlook for tomorrow : Icelandic champagne.
The Editor of the Daily Telegraph, who probably wears dark green tinted spectacles, chose not to print this brief letter – can’t think why.
Vineyards in Scotland
President Sarkozy thinks he can stop climate change to save French vineyards. (Your report 17th august). Have politicians gone collectively bonkers or is it just the silly season? If, like Senator Steve Fielding of Australia, they studied the planet’s history and sciences, they would find that even doubling or trebling present CO2 levels would hardly affect the climate.
Michael Oxenham
On a serious note, I read of a Canadian who put his life savings into planting vines in the northern limit of the Okanagon wine district, betting that with global warming it would soon be prime wine country, while California production would plunge.
He spoke as though the warming to come was a sure thing. The next spring late freezes killed of 50% of the cherry crop. Hope his young vines survived. If we could get our message out people might not make such rash decisions.
Paolo M
This seems to be an elusive one.
http://weather.gladstonefamily.net/site/LIEF
They seem to think it is in this location but are not sure.
Tonyb
Paolo M. (03:28:29) :
Sorry Paolo, it’s a long time since I’ve been there. When I used to go there, (3 or 4 times/Year, 3 weeks at a time,) it was dangerous to go to areas you didn’t have permission to enter. (2 of my friends were shot at walking back to barracks after working late.)
I can’t even remember where the control tower is as that is a likely place for a Stephenson screen.
Sorry 🙁
DaveE.
Dave,
thank you very much. I’ve already spotted the control tower but nothing resembling a Stevenson Screen.
Often the met office is located at one end of the runway.
TonyB,
that site could be a good one where I can upload photographs of all the stations I found. Thank you very much!
Jimmy Haigh (01:29:21) :
D. King (11:49:26) :
“Save a wee dram for me Jimmy, and Lang may yer lum reek!”
Slainthe!
And what a wonderful Scottish phrase! Let that be the deniers battle cry! “Lang may yer lum reek” indeed.
(The following is a translation from the Scots for the benefit of our English and American viewers: “I hope that your chimney belches out thick black smoke for a very long time”.)
And for those not steeped in, er, tradition… A proper whisky is made from barley malt that has had a strong infusion of smoke from smouldering peat. Yer lum must mightily reek to get a good flavour… (though I suspect the original is more about keeping the house warm).
One of my brothers is a fellow beer and whisky “connoisseur” and his favourite phrase is: “I’m not as thunk as drinkle peep am I”. I don’t know where he got it from unless it was a moment of beer-fuelled inspiration.
For some reason I get an echo of a “Laugh In” episode with Goldie Hawn… I think the full quote was:
“I’m not under the alkafluence of inkahol that some thinkle peep I am. It’s just the drunker I sit here the longer I get.”
Which I dredged up from :
http://ifindkarma.com/oneliners/oneliners-2000
Which includes things like:
“I’m opposed to millionaires, but it would be dangerous to offer me the same opportunity. — Mark Twain”,
“I’m perfectly capable of being a grouch emeritus arguing priority claims in 2025. — Rohit Khare”,
“I’m pink, therefore I’m spam.”
But we all know,
Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder…
so you might like something else better.
Don’t know who cooked up this variation, but I’m pretty sure it is not the original”
Starkle, starkle, little twink,
Who the hell are you I think.
I’m not under what you call,
The alcofluence of incohol.
I’m just a little slort of sheep,
I’m not drunk like thinkle peep.
I don’t know who is me yet,
But the drunker I stand here the longer I get.
So just give me one more fink to drill my cup,
‘Cause I got all day sober to Sunday up.
And then this one got me wondering about the merit of some of the climate statistics we have. Like “Global Average Temperature” that seems to me to be just about as valid:
A 2006 study found that the average American walks about 900 miles a year.
Another study found that Americans drink an average of 22 gallons of beer a year.
That means, on average, Americans get about 41 miles per gallon.
So fill me up! ….
At any rate, I can’t find a reference to “first use” for thinkle peep…
And
Mike McMillan (18:05:13) :
A single malt wine, light, fruity, just a hint of peat.
Definitely Scottish.
Had me giggling… But, aye, lad, I’ll be havin’ the fortyfied single malt wine.. with lots ‘o peat… and good oaky overtones.
Found this variation too:
And here’s one for the road or the end of the day or whatever sink your glass is drinking…
I had 12 jugs of hard cider in my cellar and was told by my husband to empty the contents down the sink, or else!! So I said I would.
I pulled the cork from the first jug and poured the contents down the sink, with the exception of one glass, which I drank. I pulled the cork from the second jug and did likewise, with the exception of one glass, which I drank. I then pulled the cork from the third jug and poured the cider down the sink, with the exception of one glass, which I drank.
I pulled the cork from the fourth sink and poured the jug down the glass, which I drank. I pulled the cork from the next jug and drank all but one sink of it, throwing the rest down the glass. I pulled the sink from the next glass and poured the cork from the jug. Then I corked the sink with the glass, jugged the drink and drank the pour.
When I had everything emptied, I steadied the house with one hand, counted the jugs, corks and glasses and sinks with the other, which were 29, and as the house came by, I counted them again and finally had all houses in one jug, which I drank.
I am not under the alcofluence of incohol as some thinkle peep I am, nor are I half so think as they drunk I am, but I fool so feelish I don’t know who is me, and the frunder I stand here the longer I get.
__________________
From: http://www.webproworld.com/jokes/60818-da-joke-thread.html
Any further exploration of the origins of “thinkle peep” I’ll keep to myself… unless I find an attributed origin or merit.
E.M.Smith (15:29:42) :
Good stuff! This is another thing I find here on WUWT – we have a sense of humour here. This peculiarly human quality is, I find, compeletely absent on pro AGW sites such as RC…
“As flagships of our common cultural heritage, elegant and refined, French wines are today in danger,” 50 leading names from the world of French wine and food wrote in an open letter. “Marked by higher alcohol levels, over-sunned aromatic ranges and denser textures, our wines could lose their unique soul.”
Le Phooie! Le Pitooie!
Have not bought French wines since 1967 – overrated, imo.
Except of course for Champagne and ChateauNeuf-du-Papes.
And there was that matter of Charles de Gaulle in Montreal, when he said “Vive le Quebec Libre”.
To bad we helped them out in WW1 and WW2. If we had not, the French would be speaking German today, and they might even be polite.
I suppose it would be asking too much for them to actually be grateful.
Sorry to be harsh, but there was much MacRae blood lost in France.
On a brighter note, what, pray tell, would be wrong with a fine glass of West Highland White Savage (Sauvignon Blanc)?
Perhaps Eilean Donan Castle could become a winery in due time.
Perhaps it once was, in warmer times…
http://www.eileandonancastle.com/
Instead of French, try a fine Italian Amarone or Ripassa, or a Barolo.
There is so much to consider about climate change. I have limited knowledge. However, I am a certified permacultureist (Dry Land farming emphysis, South Australia, Priject Alpacas). Irrespective of the realities – as yet hazy, I suggest, our only option is to create biocompatible ways of living. We know how in all kinds of bioregions. We will probably not do ot enmass till enough of us die of resources lack or are killed by equally stupid preditors. However, we CAN make a difference by supportig and maybe even joiningi those who have got together to live in harmony to get food, fibre, shelter and transport as safelly and eco-harmoniously as possible without the arogance of any idology to impeed our searching for local natural reality and working with it first to survive, and then to create a healthier, safer, even ‘posher’ way of life than even the most fortunate of us have ever know.
This is just words. I will post articles when I get the hang of blogging and can correct my spelling – which was never good! Then, I hope, we can discuss for REAL action.
Leigh
eagledreaming.ws drsnca@gmail.com