(InfoForum) - Meteorologists are concerned with current and upcoming weather conditions from the standpoint of providing timely information for public safety and planning. Vignerons are concerned with weather conditions as to the impact they will have on their grapes in making wine.

Late season rains, hail, heat spikes and frosts — both spring and fall — all contribute to angst for vignerons. Grapes are vulnerable to frosts from the time they start to grow in the spring until harvest. Early frosts can stop grapes from growing, while late fall frosts are only of value in areas that produce ice wine, like some regions of Germany.

If the vignerons are spared the spring frosts when the vines are coming into bloom, they have the summer threats of hail storms and heat spikes to contend with. Italy and France have, in recent years, had large areas of their vineyards ravaged by violent hail storms. Temperatures too high for too long will accelerate the ripening process, pushing them into being overripe too quickly — or even pushing them to become raisins.

The entire state of California often prays for generous rains to end their drought. If they arrive around the time the grapes are nice and plump, just weeks or days away from picking, this can cause mold to form among tight clusters or dilute the flavor profile in the wine. All of this boils down to understanding why vintage matters.

Sommeliers identify which vintages are among the best from areas of wine-producing regions. To the casual wine drinker, this is likely not too important, but for those who take wine consumption and investment seriously, this information is quite important for consistent taste and return on investment.

Like gold and silver, inflation, sacristy and winery reputation will eventually drive the price of praised vintages higher. Enough to pay for your child's college tuition? A new Mercedes? Not likely, but for some, it beats many other investment gains.

Once a vigneron produces a marketable crop, and then as a vintner makes an acceptable or even popular wine, the goal to shoot for is consistency every year to keep customers coming back.

For the small grower and winemaker, this has to be the most difficult challenge to meet, as a weather disruption like elevated temperatures, hail or early fall frost can leave them without a vintage year. Larger operations like Gallo, Beringer, and Kendall-Jackson have wine grape plantings in different parts of the world as a hedge against a single weather calamity wiping out their year's harvest.