For the second consecutive year, more than 28,000 hectares of vineyards will be uprooted in France as the industry faces a crisis driven by declining wine consumption, repeated droughts, foreign competition, rising energy prices, and a record-smashing June heatwave that pushed temperatures to 44°C. 'If you look at the landscape, it's frightening,' one top winegrower admitted to French newspaper Le Monde.
How Heat Damages Grapes
Grape vines are highly sensitive to temperature changes, producing their best wines within narrow heat ranges. French vines are accustomed to a warm Mediterranean climate, but temperatures are spiraling out of control with devastating consequences. Dr Alistair Nesbitt, an expert in climate change and viticulture, told Metro: 'When it gets too hot, the vines shut down. The soils become very dry. If there is no moisture in the soil, then no moisture is being pulled into the vines. It creates a really unsuitable growing environment. Producers in France and elsewhere are really struggling.'
Grapes are also being burnt by the intense sun. Per Karlsson, who runs wine tours in France and worldwide, said a winemaker in the Loire Valley reported that 40% of their grapes had been burnt in the recent heatwave and could not be used. Karlsson, who runs BKWine Magazine, added: 'The rapid evolution of the grapes means that the grape juice will be unbalanced and will not have the best balance of acidity and flavours. If the grapes become smaller, which is likely if there is a lack of water, you will get more skin and less juice. It can mean the wine will get harsher.'
England's Rising Opportunity
While soaring temperatures strain French vineyards, they are turning England and Wales into increasingly favourable places for viticulture. Dr Nesbitt, director at vine management service Vinescapes, said: 'We have seen a really rapid rise in temperatures during the growing season over the last 30 years. Regions that were previously unsuitable are now suitable. That has really enabled these vineyards and varieties to expand and grow.'
The UK's ten warmest years on record have all occurred since 2002. From 2004 to 2021, British viticulture expanded nearly 400%, from 761 to 3,800 hectares. These new vineyards are concentrated in south-eastern and southern England, particularly Essex, Sussex, and Hampshire, but have also stretched to Yorkshire and Wales. A landmark harvest in England and Wales last year produced the equivalent of 16.5 million bottles of wine.
English sparkling wines, which require cooler temperatures than still wines, are already excelling. Philip Stephenson-Oliver, a wine influencer with a decade in the trade, said: 'Thirty years ago, a Frenchman would not have been seen dead drinking a glass of English sparkling wine. Now there are so many blind tastings where English sparkling wine is beating some of the best Champagnes. The south of England is fast becoming a master of producing excellent sparkling wines in the traditional Champagne style.'
In September last year, British company Nyetimber won Champion Sparkling Wine at the prestigious International Wine Awards, the first time the trophy has been lifted by a producer from outside Champagne. As the climate continues to warm, Dr Kate Gannon from the London School of Economics notes 'an even wider range of wine we can produce.' She added: 'On one level it really appears that climate warming has offered a real opportunity for the UK. A short-term window opened.'
Gareth Maxwell, founder of winemaker The Heretics Wine, agreed: 'We are right on the edge of being able to make top-class wines. In the wine world, people know England makes good quality sparkling. The thing to follow is good quality still wine.' That moment is already arriving; an English Chardonnay from Danbury Ridge in Essex won third place in London Wine Fair's 'Greatest Chardonnay Showdown' in May this year. 'English Rosé is going to start taking on Provence,' claims Philip.
Climate Risks for UK Wine
'Climate change has helped us, but it brings other problems as well,' Gareth stresses. 'We are making hay while the sun shines.' Dr Gannon's research predicts many issues the British wine industry will face, including more extreme weather such as extreme temperatures, heavy rainfall, and droughts at key growing moments. A deluge of rain risks waterlogged soils, equally devastating for vulnerable vines. Warming temperatures also bring new pests and diseases. Dr Gannon said: 'Climate change will become very bad news for the UK wine sector too, if we don't find ways to reduce the rate of warming.'
Unexpected temperature fluctuations throughout the year can also wreak havoc. Dr Nesbitt explained: 'Vine buds are dormant over winter, and in the spring, when the soil and the air warms up, their buds open up. Then if you have a late-spring frost, those young small buds are very exposed to cold temperatures. It can really injure or kill them.'
The world has 7 million hectares of vineyards, and cannot rely on England, which has just 4,500. One answer to climate challenges is regenerative viticulture, Dr Nesbitt says. This method protects and enhances soil and biodiversity, helping vines become 'more resilient to heat spikes.' According to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine, this can include covering crops between vine rows, compost, and minimal use of persistent chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Dr Nesbitt added: 'The result is we can store more water in soils and we can build resilience to climate change. It is not all doom and gloom – there is a positive story coming out of this.'
