vineyard

Vineyards in France suffer biggest loss in decades

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– Vineyards in France suffer biggest loss in decades:

Spring frost has ravaged production in some of France’s most famous winemaking regions, including Champagne, Bordeaux, and Burgundy, causing at least €1 billion in damage in what vintners call the biggest disaster in a quarter century.

Temperatures plunged below freezing in late April, hurting shoots already well-developed because of earlier mild weather.

Winegrowers have used candles, heaters and even the down-draft from helicopters to try to save crops.

“It’s a frost like we haven’t seen since 1991,” Paul-Francois Vranken, chief executive officer of Vranken-Pommery Monopole told Bloomberg, adding that winemakers “are worried.”

April’s frost damage spread across Europe’s wine-producing regions, but France was worst affected.

Read moreVineyards in France suffer biggest loss in decades

English vineyards report ‘catastrophic’ damage

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– English vineyards report ‘catastrophic’ damage:

“English wine crop ruined,” reads headline. Late frosts have caused devastation at British vineyards, warn wine producers.

Temperatures dropped to -6C (21F) over the past week or so, killing off the delicate buds.

As much as 90 percent losses

Read moreEnglish vineyards report ‘catastrophic’ damage

Hard freeze in France: Some vineyards totally destroyed

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– Hard freeze in France – Some vineyards totally destroyed:

“In winemakers’ memory … no one ever experienced such a severe freeze.” More freezes in the forecast.

27 Apr 2017 – Hard freezes in some of France’s famous wine-making regions, including Champagne, Bordeaux and Burgundy, have caused extensive damage.

Temperatures plunged in all three regions last week, sometimes to below -7C (19°F).

Read moreHard freeze in France: Some vineyards totally destroyed

Warming withers Aussie wine industry

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High cost of water adds to pressure to sell, change grapes or even move

MELBOURNE – Australian grape growers reckon they are the canary in the coal mine of global warming, as a long drought forces winemakers to rethink the styles of wine they can produce and the regions they can grow in.

The three largest grape-growing regions in Australia, the driest inhabited continent on earth, all depend on irrigation to survive. The high cost of water has made life tough for growers.

Some say they probably won’t survive this year’s harvest, because of the cost of keeping vines alive. Water prices have more than tripled.

Read moreWarming withers Aussie wine industry