Rain, frost, hail, diseases ... In the vineyards of Burgundy, the harvest at the end of September confirmed the bitter observation that, this year, "everything was determined" to generate catastrophic losses of "up to 95%" . However, the colors of autumn on the Burgundy vineyards give the region back its radiance. Listed as a Unesco heritage, the climates, these carefully delimited vineyards on the slopes of the Côte de Nuits and Beaune (south of Dijon), give a fabulous spectacle when the leaves take on colors ranging from yellow to orange. This landscape is also the backdrop for Chancellor Angela Merkel's last visit to France. President Emmanuel Macron presents him this Wednesday with the insignia of Grand'Croix of the Legion of Honor in Beaune (Côte d'Or), a major wine-growing place in Burgundy.Small walk, in pictures, in the vineyards near Vosne-Romanée.


Director:

Olivier JUSZCZAK

  • Since July 2015, the climates of the Burgundy vineyards have been listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

  • These are small plots of precisely delimited vines spread over the Côte de Nuits and the Côte de Beaune, extending over 50 km south of Dijon.

  • They are the cradle of the terroir of Burgundy wines, the specificity of which is to closely associate the taste quality with the plot from which it comes.

  • 1,247 different climates are very precisely delimited according to their geological, hydrographic and atmospheric characteristics, and hierarchized in the system of Appellations d'Origine Contrôlée (AOC).

  • On this mosaic, the two grape varieties mainly used to make Burgundy wines are Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

  • Due to rain, frost, hail, and disease, the harvests at the end of September confirmed the bitter observation that, this year, “everything was done” to generate catastrophic losses of “up to 95%. ".

  • There were severe late frosts in April and severe thunderstorms with hail in June.

  • However, beyond this annus horribilis, it is the repetition of climatic disturbances that worries the profession.

  • “Since 2010, we have only had two years without major problems: 2017 and 2018,” a Burgundy winegrower recalls to AFP.

  • Throughout France, wine production will fall by 29% compared to 2020, to stand at 33.3 million hectoliters, according to the Ministry of Agriculture, Burgundy seems even more affected.

  • “We are generally between 30 and 50% of losses but there are big differences, with 70 and 80% of losses for the whites of the Côte de Beaune and -50% in the Chablis and the Mâconnais”, estimates François Labet, President of the Interprofessional Bureau of Burgundy Wines (BIVB).

  • The 161st Hospices de Beaune (Côte d'Or) wine sale, whose 2021 vintage promises to be “subtle and racy” despite the capricious weather, will take place on November 21 with the actors Jeanne Balibar and Pio Marmaï as sponsors.

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