Wine is examined in a variety of disciplines. It encompasses agronomy and geography, as along with geology, politics and geopolitics. The New World was with its wine-drinking Europeans who exported to colonies a lifestyle from abroad. The importation of wine was essential for the short-term, while the planting of grapes would be a long-term plan.
Colonialism and Wine
The exact replication of Europe in the Americas was not feasible however most of the comforts from the home country could be imported. The exotic fauna, flora and plants were transplanted across the ocean to allow for the development of new varieties of vegetables and meats as well as wines.
As the Spanish army gained control over Mexico, Central America and South America, the Catholic Church stood alongside the Spanish army. Wines were cultivated for both secular and sacramental consumption. It was also a component of the daily diet and encouraged planting.
The first attempts to grow Vitis vinifera in central Mexico were unsuccessful in the 1500s in the beginning. However, within 50 years, there were many vineyards along the western coastline of South America.
The Spanish focused on the planting of an easy grape, which we know today as Pais in Chile which is also known as the Mission grape in Mexico. It was easy to maintain and was resistant to drought. It made a light-colored wine that was of poor quality.
However, since the 21st century , winemakers in Chile and Argentina have transformed the wine to become a decent kind of wine. The colonies offered a market for Spanish wine exporters in the 1500s. They soon realized that the colonial wines were pushing them out.
The 16th century saw King Philip II stopped wine production in the colonies. However, the enforcement was not successful.
In the late 1700s, the British tried to duplicate Spanish success in New England and Virginia. However, the initial planting was unsuccessful due to the weather conditions and disease. European grapes are susceptible to phylloxera. The problem was discovered centuries later.
The colonists tried to create wine from the wild grapes that grew in North America from the beginning of the 1600s. Though not well-loved by the public but the wine continues to be made in New York and New England by using the traditional American grapes, such as Concord. The wine was produced using Vitis labrusca, a grape species. They are used as table grapes, wine grapes, and juice grapes, they make wine, particularly kosher wine like Manischewitz and Mogen David. Experts describe these wines, as being foxy tasting.
Thomas Jefferson was the most prominent wine-related expert of his time. He extensively traveled the European wine regions, and meticulously recorded his observations. He planted numerous times at Monticello; however, the results were never successful. This inability to plant European vines was due to climate and disease.
However, in his honor the Thomas Jefferson Foundation in the 1990s restored the vineyards at Monticello. Within three years, they had commercially profitable harvest and production of wine.
Virginia’s wines are growing in popularity despite the hot and humid summers. In the last decades the industry has developed and maturing. The majority of production is Vitis vinifera but there are certain American varieties. The top varieties include Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Viognier.
The colonial politics did not stop at the Americas. The Dutch established the Cape of Good Hope on South Africa’s Atlantic coast in the 1650s to serve as a halfway point between Europe and Holland on the spice route. The wine was not made to be consumed locally, but it was available at a cost to thirsty ships’ crews. In the late 1700s, the colonization of Australia was in progress and in the beginning of 1800, the export of wine was an important economic factor.
New Zealand was not an economically viable production area until the mid-1700s. Canada was also late to the party and is today a vital wine-producing country.
Where Europeans go the wine goes. The influence of colonialism and the spread wine was felt all over the world.
The extent of European colonialism between the 1500s and the 1900s affected at the very most 90% of the world’s lands. French colonialism led to problems in Vietnam and Algeria. The English were also in Iran, India, and Hong Kong, well into the 20th century. Today, we are aware that wine is a matter of politics, everywhere, and in every country.
China as well as Australia are both involved in a major wine dispute. The current U.S. tariffs on most French wines, German wines, Spanish wines, as well as U.K. wines has triggered fierce retaliation by the European Union.
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