French wine production faces sharp decline

France’s wine production is likely to fall by 22% in 2024 compared to 2023, and be 15% lower than the five-year average, according to the Agreste statistics agency. Using data it collected

up to October 1, when the grape harvest was still in full swing in many regions of France, the agency said it was expecting the final figure to be 37.5 million hectolitres of wine. One

hectolitre is 100 litres, which is the equivalent to 125 standard sized wine bottles. The drop is mainly due to bad weather during the winter, spring and summer in all the country’s main

grape-growing areas. If confirmed, the crop will be the lowest since 2021, when late frosts in April hit many producers just as vines were coming out in bud. Read more: Winemakers face new

problems each year due to climate change in France GRAPE HARVEST CRISIS  Agreste said Burgundy, Beaujolais and Champagne were particularly badly hit by the poor weather, while hail storms in

late September, just before the harvest in the Cognac grape region also impacted some vineyards there. Special dispensation to start harvesting early in some parts of the Cognac region was

given to vineyards hit by hail, in a bid to save some of the grapes. Before the storms some vineyard owners had been demonstrating with their tractors twice a week around Cognac town in

protest against the European Union’s move to tax imports of Chinese electric vehicles. The Chinese government warned since the summer that if the tax was imposed it would place taxes on the

import of Cognac, something it did within hours of the EU decision being signed. Wet weather last winter made pruning vines difficult with some vineyards putting back pruning until late in

the season in the hope of getting a few days without rain.  Agreste said bad weather had a number of effects on grapes over the year. The flowering of the vines, something which usually

happens over three or four days in early June in most regions, occurred in wet and windy conditions. Flowers and the very small grapes which follow the flowering were knocked to the ground.

The bad weather also led to smaller grapes being formed at this early stage. As the grapes developed over the summer, wet conditions continued, meaning that fungi diseases such as mildew

proliferated, and there were also losses throughout the season due to hail. Read more: Locals fear Champagne expansion would lead to price hike DECIMATION OF VINEYARDS In a region by region

breakdown, the agency said that Languedoc-Roussillon, was hit both by drought in the shadow of the Pyrenees mountains, and by mildew in areas where it did rain, with overall production

expected to be down 13%. Champagne will see a 33% drop compared to last year’s near-record harvest, with mildew, spring frosts, wet conditions during flowering and late heavy rain in

September the cause. In Burgundy and Beaujolais, where the harvest was ended by October 1, the amount of fermenting wine was 35% down on 2023, due to mildew, flooding and hail especially

around Yonne. In Alsace, the harvest was still in full swing at the start of October, with the cold summer delaying the ripening of grapes. Mildew and rain during flowering mean a fall of

13% expected for the region. By contrast in Savoie, one of the smallest wine areas, a late attack of mildew meant the decision was taken to harvest early. The region had late frost and

mildew, with production down 5%. Jura, another mountain area, had a disastrous year for grapes, with frost and mildew accounting for a 75% drop compared to 2023. Val de Loire saw a 30% drop

due to mildew and wet and windy conditions when the vines flowered. Wet weather forecasts for late September and early October also meant that permission was given to harvest grapes earlier

than had been expected. Charente, which saw a record harvest in 2023, was expected to have a crop 30% smaller due mainly to wet and windy weather when vines flowered. Some regions to the

north of Cognac started harvesting early, during the last week of September, after hail hit ripe grapes. In the Bordeaux region, where fears of overproduction and a lack of candidates to

take over vineyards saw up to 10% of vines uprooted in 2023, the year by contrast was relatively good compared to other regions.  Production was expected to fall by 14% compared to 2023,

with mildew and wet weather during flowering the main problems, along with occasional hail storms causing problems. The remaining regions, South-west, South-east and Corsica all have similar

problems, with parts of Corsica also affected by drought. Read more: Wine crisis: France looks to tear up 30,000 hectares of vines MARKETING BEAUJOLAIS NOUVEAU In spite of the lower

quantity, it is too early to say if the quality of the wine will be affected. Sometimes winemakers with smaller crops find them easier to work with and so produce excellent wines from small

grape crops. Cooler conditions too might also help quality – Bordeaux and other south-west wines in hot years have had much higher alcohol levels with 14% being common, and higher alcohol

levels sometimes work against quality. Alcohol is volatile and takes many aromas away with it, and is also “hot” in the mouth, making it hard to get beyond it to the subtle taste differences

which make wine interesting. The first wines to be ready to market, Beaujolais nouveau, will arrive in mid-November, but the professional tastings of Bordeaux and Burgundy in the spring of

2025, will be the best guides to quality for the year.