Unpredictable weather leads to mixed results for Spanish harvest

The Spanish Ministry of Farming, Food and Fisheries estimates at end of October 2024, the final grape harvest for 2024 totalled approximately 36 mhls of wine and grape must. Unpredictable weather including high rainfall in some areas and drought in others has led to a challenging harvest for growers in the country.

South Africa hopeful of recovery after ‘challenging’ 2024 harvest

After a difficult 2024 season, which was characterised by floods, frost and strong winds, South African wine producers are optimistic about the 2025 harvest.

Gusbourne follows English wine boom with record harvest

English sparkling and fine wine producer, Gusbourne, has followed in the footsteps of several other domestic wineries in 2023, by announcing a record-breaking harvest.

Symington predicts ‘high quality vintage’ in Douro

With the red grapes still coming in across various estates, leading producer Symington Family Estates is predicting one of the best Douro vintages in recent years.

Languedoc winegrowers celebrate plentiful harvest

Winemakers in the Languedoc have described the 2022 vintage as “very exciting,” despite the challenging conditions of this year.

Australia facing the heat

With much of its current viticultural activity already adjusting to a changing climate, Australia’s wine industry is fast progressing with its sustainability programmes.

Vibrancy shines through in South America harvest report

Vibrant, zingy wines which have retained freshness and elegance despite weather challenges have emerged from South America in 2021, a new harvest report focusing on the region has said.

Pledge of €1bn made to mitigate France’s frost “disaster”

The French government has pledged €1 billion in financial aid for farmers and winemakers whose crops have been devasted by this month’s cold snap which has led to the estimated loss of a third of the country’s wine production.

Second lockdown sounds ‘death knell’ for the ‘Ditch

Hanging Ditch, one of Manchester’s foremost independent businesses, has been forced to close due to the ongoing stress of the pandemic.

Concha y Toro brings harvest forward to tackle one of most challenging harvests yet

"Chaotic" weather threatens Bordeaux vineyards

Growers in Bordeaux have resorted to exceptional measures to protect their vines from “chaotic” weather conditions, the CIVB has reported.

‘Moonsoon’ weather costs supermarkets £120m in missed sales

UK supermarkets lost out on more than £120m in missed sales in the past four weeks as growth in the grocery sector continued to slow.

‘Ready to drink’ 2017 Burgundies could ease sky-high prices ahead of Brexit

The wines now emerging from Burgundy’s 2017 vintage could help to ease the pockets of restaurants and fine wine merchants, it has been suggested.

Douro harvest delivers quality on back of “absurdly low” yields

Following a year of challenging weather extremes, the Douro’s 2018 harvest has given up some “excellent Ports and Douro wines” according to Symington Family Estate’s annual harvest report.

Royal Wedding and hot weather boost online BWS sales

Online sales of beer, wines and spirits were up 27.3% YoY in March 2018, new data has revealed.

Cold weather turns into pressure cooker for high street stores

Climate change: The greatest threat to humanity

Extreme weather has wreaked havoc on the winemaking world this year. Jo Gilbert traces these events back to the effects of climate change and the global impact of an increasingly CO2-laden planet

Tim Atkin MW: At the mercy of the elements

It’s squeaky bum time in Chablis. Grape growers the world over consult weather forecasts on a regular basis, but in the Yonne it’s almost an obsession. You can see why the locals are worried: nature has picked them out for some particularly brutal treatment in the past two vintages.