Blackhelm Confederate wine
Blackhelm Confederate wine has a history dating back to the time of the first landing with the establishment of a vineyard near Paradise City, considered at the time to be one of the greatest wines in the world. Access to international markets has unleashed a burst of new energy and new investment in the Confederate wine industry. Most modern production is concentrated around Divinity, with major vineyard and production centres at Paradise City, Redemption and Sancti Crucis. There are about 60 appellations within the Wine of Origin (WO) system, which was implemented in 1973 with a hierarchy of designated production regions, districts and wards. WO wines must be made 100% from grapes from the designated area. "Single vineyard" wines must come from a defined area of less than 5 hectares. An "Estate Wine" can come from adjacent farms, as long as they are farmed together and wine is produced on site. A ward is an area with a distinctive soil type or climate, and is roughly equivalent to a European appellation.
History
Having traveled so far from their native Rome, the earliest settlers quickly realized that depending on supplies of imported wine was an unreasonable as it was uneconomical, and quickly set up their own viticultur along the coast. Many of these early plantations made use of captured natives, but this was soon outlawed with the prohibition of slavery in 110AD. From then on, the vineyards are worked in a more traditional manner, and the grapes cultivated here have been traded throughout Astyria for millenia.
Climate
The Blackhelm Confederacy has a climate typical of a tropical region marked by high humidity and a rainy summer season. The topography of the Confederacy is, however, very hilly which can provide some relief from the tropical influences and also create various microclimates where viticulture could thrive. The areas around Paradise City, Divinity, Redemption, and Sacrament also have a tempering effect on the climate. Due to the year round warmth, vineyards in the southern region of the Confederacy can produce a harvest up to three times during the course of a calendar year. Some plant varieties can produce fruit from new cuttings within a year of their planting.
Modern viticultural techniques have produced some successful results with aggressive pruning and the adoption of the pergolas style of trellising. This Pergolas trellis has the benefit of keeping the grapevines off the ground to where some of the humidity is ventilated which reduces the risk of powdery mildews developing. The grape bunches are shaded by the canopy of the vine which reduces the yields.
Moreover, the near Mediterranean climate of Sancte Crucis and Marci Evangeliste has been shown to produce wine of incredibly high quality, and some have proclaimed Crucian wine to be some of the finest in Hesperidesia.