When is vintage in france

The legend in France is that frost is possible until the feasts of the Saints de Glace, the frost saints, May 11 to Only time and the climate will tell. Prior to the frost, demand for current stocks was on the rise in domestic and U. The market is expected to continue to rise in volume, but prices are unlikely to increase, except for the very top wines.

Frosts hit in various appellations in , , and There are concerns about global wholesale buyers taking advantage of available stocks. Until U. This follows several vintages of weather damage due to heavy rain, frost and hail.

No information on prices yet. Depending on location and variety, half the crop was hit. Some areas normally protected were also hit, many with all-night black frost. Importers waiting for more information. Some areas, particularly those growing Chardonnay, were hit, but numerical estimates are scarce. Champagne holds a lot of older stock for blending so it will not likely impact most of its wines in the U.

The vintage chart and harvest reports provided by the Wine Scholar Guild gives you the ranking for every French wine region and vintage from to today. Andrew Jefford, award-winning wine journalist and WSG Academic Advisor has compiled information and written the vintage charts starting with the vintage.

He is also updating information for the vintages prior to For a quick overview of the recent vintages in the Northern wine regions of France, please use the vintage chart below. More detailed vintage charts, including details on the growing seasons, harvest conditions style and character of the wines are avaiable for Alsace , Champagne , Loire , and Bourgogne.

You can read about the growing season in Alsace and learn if Riesling and Pinot Gris were particularly successful. Since , we have provided you with the right wine tools and accessories to discover vintage years and fully appreciate grand cru wines.

Unfortunately, this old adage proved to be true in the spring of , as icy weather took French winemakers and farmers by surprise, much to their dismay. Although a cold spell had been forecast, no one expected it to be quite so severe and widespread. Unfortunately, the previous week had been very warm for the time of year. The frost caused a sudden change of temperature at the worst possible moment, just as the first buds were beginning to break.

To make matters worse, the harvest had taken place earlier than usual for a number of wine-growers, who had pruned at the end of the year. Their vines were therefore already at an advanced stage of budding in April and were all the more damaged by this sub-zero spring frost , as were the earlier ones, whose buds were burned by the cold.

In comparison to previous years, the cold snap was far worse than and similar to the one in , or even the great frost of For some distraught winemakers, the survival of their vines and business has been called into question this year. In view of the extensive damage, the French government has promised to declare an agricultural disaster for The consequences are, without a doubt, already catastrophic for the overwhelming majority of French vineyards.

Locally, the damage varies from one plot to another, but many winegrowers already know that they have partially or fully lost their harvest, because the frost destroyed their vines and first buds.