Are prestige wine brands better equipped to handle climate change?

In January, we sat down with Château Margaux Deputy Managing Director Aurelien Valance to explore how the first-growth wine, one of just five, has not only maintained but grown its reputation globally since the classification system was introduced in 1855.

During this chat, another theme emerged that Valance agreed to re-visit in this second piece: climate change. Or more specifically, how a changing climate will impact an industry where quality is so closely linked to both climate and location.

This question, it turns out, is front of mind for the Médoc producer.

“All the best producers, they want to adapt to climate change,” Valance tells Drinks Trade. “They want to improve the quality, but according to their idea of quality.”

In his view, this idea of quality is crucial to the subject of adapting to a changing climate – at least in relation to Château Margaux, as a prestige brand, and Bordeaux. This is because consumer preferences have changed over time more significantly than climate change has had an influence.

“Our taste today is different than the taste of our predecessors 40 years ago. What used to be a bit vegetal was accepted. Now we don’t like this.”

According to Valance, even with this fact aside, the quality of Château Margaux has not suffered as a result of climate change.

He uses the 2022 vintage as an example. “The last hot vintages, like ‘22, has shown that even when it’s extremely warm, the Cabernet Sauvignon make incredible wine,” he said.

The Drinks Trade team reached a similar conclusion after attending a Langtons media tasting of 2022 Bordeaux in October.

However, as Michael Anderson, Langtons’ Head of Auctions & Secondary Market, noted on the day, this is partially a testament to the winemakers’ ability to adapt.

“[Bordeaux’s] new wave of wines shows that potentially, as it does warm up and climate change takes hold, that even in hot vintages where there’s 40 plus days of 30 degree heat, you can turn out really impressive wines,” he said.

Terroir vs climate:

But Château Margaux is not adjusting its approach to this “new wave” style evident across some of the producers featured in the Langtons tasting.

Instead, Aurelien Valance largely attributes the quality and consistency to two factors: conscious decisions in the vineyard and terroir.

“Terroir has not changed. Climate a bit, but not that much,” Valance states. “It’s a question of details, to make your best – being selective; accept[ing] to decrease the volume to increase the quality … The best wineries, they know how to take a better advantage of the climate conditions, to take more risk, to accept very small volumes, because the most important thing that we have is our image.”

He also comments that vineyards, and especially healthy ones, are able to adapt. “With the ‘25 vintage, for example, it was extremely hot until the end of August with almost no rain, but still the vines were green. It’s like they have an ability to adapt to the new climatic conditions very quickly.”

Is Château Margaux concerned?

In short, no, says the Deputy Managing Director.

“We don’t feel too much pressure, honestly, because the soil is also the most important, and even when the vintage is complicated, we are very impressed by the quality of some of the products.”

In spite of this, Valance notes that it is something they are monitoring, and actively researching through a program of in-vineyard experiments and trials, on their quest to remain one of the world’s most prestigious wineries.

“We are very open to innovation, but before we change, we need to be sure that innovation is better than tradition,” he says.

Beyond Bordeaux:

Aurelien Valance was conscious to state that his commentary applies only to the experiences of Château Margaux.

While Château Margaux is an undeniable leader in the world of fine wine, the operations of a producer that is able to charge around $2,000 for the current vintage differ significantly from most other producers both within Bordeaux and globally.

Importantly, the second most important region for Langtons, Bourgogne, is starting to prepare for a far more significant impact as it crafts its 2035 strategic plan. One of three pillars, its Technical and Innovation division will be specifically tasked with helping its members navigate climate change and the associated recurring harvest losses.

With this in mind, it’s important to note that some Australian regions and wine styles will be impacted by the changing climate more than others. This is a large reason behind the growth of Tasmania for cool-climate varieties and sparkling wine production. It is also a reason why the shiraz and cabernet-based icon wines of Australia, of which are closer in style to Bordeaux than to Bourgogne, will be better positioned to retain their quality and prestige in years to come.

//

How does a world-best wine brand maintain prestige? Château Margaux Deputy MD explains