French grapes rotting on the vine after harsh weather

What’s going on here?

Climate chaos is wreaking havoc on French vineyards this year. The grape harvest has suffered the effects of weird weather, including frost, hail and heavy rain.

With some vineyards in the Chablis region of France reporting a 60% drop in production, 2024 may not be a vintage year for wine enthusiasts.

What does this mean?

Large parts of France’s wine country have faced the wettest years on record. Following spring frosts and devastating hail storms, vines were deluged by relentless rain which also led to a damaging fungal disease.

The challenging conditions have meant many growers harvested fewer grapes than usual. The French agricultural ministry reckons wine production will be 18% lower than last year, at 39.3 million hectolitres (a hectolitre is 100 litres). France is the second largest wine producer globally, so a fall in production could dismay wine lovers around the world.

France usually has a very good climate for producing wine. But this year’s washout harvest isn’t the first time its winemakers have battled difficult weather. In 2021, damaging frosts attributed to the climate crisis caused $2.4 billion worth of crop losses.

Why should we care?

A study from earlier this year found that 70% of global wine regions could become unsuitable for growing grapes, if global heating exceeds 2C. From California to Greece, researchers found that celebrated wine regions will need to battle heat, drought and storms.

Wine lovers will pay the price of climate chaos too. With some wineries producing significantly less this year, some types and vintages will become more scarce. Wine prices could also go up as wineries pay the costs of adapting their practices to changing conditions.

Wine growers have adopted innovative practices to try and beat the freakish conditions, from anti-hail devices to thawing grape buds with candles to ward off the effects of spring frosts. And many are also doing their bit to decarbonise, such as International Wineries for Climate Action (IWCA).

Changing conditions have also created brand new wine regions. Many parts of southern England are now perfect for making sparkling wine, and French winemakers are buying land there to try and adapt their businesses to climate change.