By Sybille de La Hamaide
PARIS (Reuters) – France cut its projection for this year’s wine crop on Tuesday following the rainiest September in 25 years, with 2024 now forecast to be among the worst recent vintages in such prized winemaking regions as Champagne, Burgundy and Beaujolais.
The forecast of 37.5 million hectolitres is now in line with the poor 2021 vintage marked by frost damage. It is 22% below last year’s crop and 15% below the five year average, the farm ministry said.
It was revised down from an already weak forecast of 39.3 million released the previous month, which had taken account of poor weather earlier this year. A hectolitre, or 100 litres, is equivalent to 133 standard wine bottles.
“This drop is due to unfavourable weather conditions which impacted all wine-growing areas,” the ministry said in a monthly report.
All types of wine are affected, it said, but particularly those from Burgundy, Beaujolais and Champagne. The Champagne crop would be down 33% from last year and 14% below the five-year average, while Burgundy and Beaujolais would be down 35%.
Like other crops, including cereals, grapes have suffered from heavy rainfall in France over the past year.
The ministry said many vines had flowered in cool and humid weather, causing millerandage and coulure, conditions in which grapes are small, or young grapes and flowers drop off the vine.
“Added to this were losses due to frost, mildew and hail.”
As a result of the September rainfall, the harvest was brought forward in some regions to limit health risks and additional losses.
In July, Champagne producers had called for a 12% cut in the number of grapes to be harvested this year after sales of the wine fell more than 15% in the first half of the year.
(Reporting by Sybille de La Hamaide; Editing by Alison Williams, Kirsten Donovan)
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