French winemakers battle drought as grapes suffer heat damage

Surrounded in verdant rural scenery in western France, dry brown leaves dapple the sun-baked ground of a vineyard, near the village of Saint-Fiacre-sur-Maine.

Drought, exacerbated by the multiple heatwaves that have hit France since May, has been taking a toll on French viticulture.

“This year's climate conditions have been very tough to deal with. We had a good start of the season, however since now about a month and a half we have a really serious drought that makes a lack of water for our vines,” said Muscadet winemaker Pierre-Henry Gadais, who owns the plot.

Gadais says this is the worst drought he has dealt with so far in his career.

As he strolled through his vineyard, Gadais showed how the prolonged lack of rainfall had dried out leaves and grape clusters.

“A grape like this... has been burnt by the sun. You can have all the water you want, these berries are just dead, and not going to produce anything. It's over for this grape,” Gadais said, as he tossed the dead cluster aside.

Other winemakers interviewed by Reuters across France have also expressed concern about the weather's impact on their crops.

According to France's Federation of Independent Winemakers, grape varieties grown in the Mediterranean region are better adapted to drought because of the higher temperatures typically experienced in southern France.

This year's drought has, however, been unusual because it has affected more northerly regions, threatening vineyards across much of the country, the federation's president told Reuters on Tuesday (July 21).

With the harvest set to begin in August, it is still difficult to determine the extent of the damage to France's wine sector, experts said.

“It's always hard to estimate the lack of yield until you harvest. Everything can happen, Gadais said.

"If we have a good amount of rain, we can almost harvest from a simple to double. It will really be determined by what we have in the coming weeks,” he added.

Experts however say some crop losses are inevitable, due not only to heatwaves but also to hailstorms that struck parts of France in July and damaged vines.

-Camera: Stephane Mahe; Editing: Elissa Darwish, Manuel Ausloos & Stephane Mahe; Writing: Elissa Darwish/Reuters