Poland, in Central Europe, is a New and perhaps surprising addition to the list of wine-producing nations. Although winemaking is still in its infancy here, and has not yet made its mark on international markets, it is nevertheless on the move.
Northern Poland, where Gdansk meets the icy Baltic Sea, enjoys a temperate maritime Climate. In mid-winter, up to 45% of the Baltic Sea is covered with ice, despite the salt content of its brackish waters.
The ice is generally concentrated on the northern shores of the sea, around northern Sweden, Finland and Estonia, and its presence indicates how cold this Part of the world can be. The climate becomes progressively more continental inland, giving warmer summers and drier, colder winters. The two warmest regions in Poland are in the Southeast, near the borders with Ukraine and Slovakia, and in the southwestern region of Silesia, which borders the Czech Republic.
Despite Poland's cool climate, attempts to grow grapes have met with moderate success, thanks in part to the gradual warming of the climate.
Remarkably enough, grapes are grown as far north as the Masurian lakes (Mazury in Polish), which stretch almost to the border with Lithuania. The northernmost lake, Wegorzewski, Lies 225 kilometres (140 miles) north of the Polish capital, Warsaw, at a cool northern latitude of 54 degrees, which it shares with the far north of England. In the southern hemisphere, the 54th parallel bisects Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America, just 500 miles from Antarctica. The only reason grapes can grow at this latitude in Poland is because of the moderating influence of the lakes, which protect the vineyards from extreme winter temperatures.
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