High-Altitude Wines for Supermarket Wine

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Temperature falls by about 0.6 degrees centigrade with every 100-metre rise above sea level, and although vineyards at high altitudes are exposed to more hours of sunlight than those at lower levels, the diurnal range (the difference between day and night temperatures) increases the higher you go, which means the grapes undergo a longer, more even ripening period, leading to more balanced and fresher wines. In addition, vines whose roots struggle to find water and nutrients in the stony soils typically found on slopes, especially those at altitude, produce grapes with better concentration than those from deep alluvial soils which retain more water.

Wine-making monks in Burgundy discovered centuries ago that grapes grown on the hillsides made wine with more elegance and freshness than those from the valley floors, leading to the Grand Cru and Premier Cru classification of the finest vineyards (and most costly wines) that we still use today.

More recently, growers all over the world where grapes were historically grown at lower levels and/or on flat ground, have been moving plantings to higher levels. This is partly due to a shift in tastes from wines with heavy fruit and high alcohol levels to those with more delicacy and less alcohol; it is also a response to climate change which has seen global temperatures rise. Higher altitudes also have colder, drier winters, which help to kill off pests, while vineyards on slopes have greater airflow, which also keeps disease at bay. As the demand for organic and sustainably produced wines grows, we can expect to see more wineries turn their attention to more elevated, breezy land which reduces the need for spraying grapes with chemicals to keep them healthy.

In addition, studies researching unusually large concentrations of centenarians in regions of Sardinia suggest their modest consumption of red wine could be a key to old age – vines at high altitudes are exposed to higher concentrations of UV radiation which stimulates the synthesis of polyphenols, antioxidant compounds which are believed to protect against heart disease. Wines made at high-altitude terroirs are not necessarily better than those from lower levels, and they won’t make you live forever, but their qualities of finesse and freshness make for very good drinking.

@KateHawkings