Fingers crossed as wine harvest begins in France

(TheLocal) - The annual wine harvest season got underway in France this week, two weeks later than usual thanks in the main to adverse weather conditions. Violent summer storms have meant 2013 may not be a vintage year for some French wines.

The harvesting of France's grapes began in earnest this week in the southern region of Roussillon – traditionally the first area to begin collecting the grapes.

Although we are not yet at the end of August, the start of the harvest season in Rousillon is actually two weeks later than usual thanks to the cold and wet spring.

Because of the weather, professionals are only expecting an average crop yield, but despite the delay, wine growers are in upbeat mood.

“It is very late but it doesn’t matter. The vines are beautiful," said Catherine Jeannin, owner of the Mas Crémat vineyard in Espira-de-l'Agly.

The first teams of pickers were out in the vineyards early on Monday morning collecting “Muscat” grapes, not to make the famous sweet wines, but a dry white wine, which will be the first of the 2013 wines to hit the shelves when they go on sale in October.

Marc Guichet, from the Chamber of Agriculture in the Pyrénées-Orientales region believes the delay in the harvest could mean a vintage year for red wine in Roussillon.

After a stormy summer, however, where vineyards in Bordeaux and Burgundy have been ravaged, he accepts that disaster could strike at any time.

“If the grapes are allowed to ripen we can do wonderful things, but on the other hand we could get downpours, hailstorms or grapevine moths, which can be very destructive,” he warned.