France’s wine production nears a 70-year low, leaving winemakers with tough choices

Florent Latour, CEO of the largest owner of Grand Cru vineyards in Burgundy, spent the summer praying for rain.

"We felt we were so close," Latour, who's head of Maison Louis Latour, told CNBC. "Just a bit more rain would have produced a fantastic harvest on both counts, but we had to settle for quality, and about half of a harvest."

His prayers — and frustrations — are being echoed across France, as a record-hot summer and severe droughts hit the country's world-famous wine industry hard.

France's agriculture ministry has warned that wine production could hit a 70-year low in 2026, marking the third year of reduced output.

"The 2023 vintage was decent, but yields have been pretty disastrous since the start of the decade," said Jean-Marie Cardebat, chair of wines and spirits at the INSEEC Grande École university. "We are realizing that no region in France is safe from heatwaves today."

Paradoxically, the regions that suffer the most are those with more temperate climates, namely the Loire Valley and Champagne. In contrast, winemakers in the southern regions of Bordeaux and Languedoc-Roussillon reported higher harvests compared to last year.

For Cardebat, also an economics professor at the University of Bordeaux, France's poor preparation in the face of climate change is a big problem.

"Spain is more often affected by heatwaves and global warming; however, it is better prepared," he said. "Partly because it already has an irrigation network in place."