Devdiscourse reports that extreme heat is stunting grape growth across Champagne, Bordeaux and Burgundy, raising the risk of a smaller French crop and one of the earliest harvests on record. Champagne producers are preparing for a harvest around 15 August, with yields expected to be around 10% lower than last year, while heat-driven sugar concentration could affect flavour and alcohol levels even if quality is preserved.
Simon Judge
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Will Bordeaux Feel the Heat Over Irrigation Rules?
The Drinks Business reports that Lafleur, having left the Pomerol AOC and wider Bordeaux designation partly over irrigation constraints, has already begun carefully measured watering this season after temperatures in Bordeaux rose into the 40s. The article frames the issue as a broader test for Bordeaux appellation rules under climate pressure, with Lafleur arguing that early intervention can prevent hydric stress, scorched leaves and potentially vine death, while existing AOC dispensations may arrive too late for growers facing extreme heat.
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Bitter Dispute Drags On Between Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie Over French Winery
MarketWatch reports that Brad Pitt has gained another legal advantage in his long-running dispute with Angelina Jolie over Château Miraval, the French winery the former couple once co-owned. The article says the dispute dates back to Jolie’s sale of her stake and that Pitt’s side has won a motion connected to deposing members of Stoli Group, keeping the high-profile winery ownership battle active ahead of further proceedings.
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Extreme Heat Could Change The Mix For European Drinks Makers
Reuters reports that Europe’s current heatwave is challenging the usual assumption that hot weather lifts alcohol sales, with analysts and companies warning that extreme temperatures can push consumers indoors, reduce alcohol consumption and raise agricultural and production costs. The article notes research showing alcohol sales rise with temperature only up to just over 32°C, after which the effect weakens, while health authorities have also advised avoiding alcohol during severe heat because of dehydration risks. The implications matter for wine as well as beer and spirits, particularly as more frequent heatwaves affect both consumer behaviour and vineyard agriculture.
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Champagne on Course for Earliest Harvest Start Date Ever
The Drinks Business reports that Champagne could begin harvesting as early as 10 August in warmer sites, potentially setting the region’s earliest recorded picking date after early flowering, severe spring frosts and heatwave conditions. The official start date is currently expected to be 15 August, but Montgueux may begin earlier, while producers are balancing healthy fruit against risks from high temperatures, sunburn and reduced yields after frost damage of around 40% on average.
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People Are Willing To Pay More For Climate-Proof Wine, Study Shows
Grist reports on a new Cornell University study testing how consumers respond to three climate-adaptation options for winegrape producers, shade cloth, switching to heat-adapted grape varieties, and relocating to cooler regions. The study found that consumers were willing to pay a premium when these changes were clearly communicated, although relocation was the least desirable option, and the article notes important limits, including a sample of only 300 respondents, mostly younger graduates who already cared about environmental issues and food labels.
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Why The Australian Wine Industry Is In Peril
7NEWS reports that Australia’s wine sector is facing one of its worst downturns in decades, with Darren De Bortoli ripping out vines in the Riverina as weak global demand, oversupply and the long shadow of China’s former tariffs continue to hurt growers. The article says Wine Australia estimates more than 2 billion litres of wine are sitting in storage, while Australian Grape and Wine chief executive Lee McLean argues the industry needs both export-market work and stronger domestic promotion to recover.
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Etruscan Grape Seeds Shed Light on Pre-Chianti Era
Harpers reports that grape seeds found in Etruscan wells at Cetamura, near Badia a Coltibuono in Chianti, are being described as evidence that reshapes the region’s viticultural history. The seeds, discovered by Florida State University archaeologists and later genetically analysed with University of York support, indicate wine grape cultivation in the area as far back as the third century BCE, with white grapes apparently dominant before Chianti became associated with red wine.
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The Wine Tastings That Became a $3.9 Million Supreme Court Showdown
Wine Drinker is reporting that a Northern California winery owner has asked the US Supreme Court to pause a nearly $4 million judgment from Napa County over wine tastings the county deemed a public nuisance. Lindsay Hoopes says the tastings were properly licensed and that the penalties could force her to sell the winery while she appeals.
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The US Wine Industry’s Growing Divide Has Nothing to Do with the Market
wine.co.za, carrying a Forbes report by Michelle Williams, says Silicon Valley Bank’s 2026 Direct-to-Consumer Wine Report shows a widening gap between high-performing and struggling US wineries. Based on responses from 450 family wineries, the report says top performers grew revenue by 22% in 2025 while bottom performers fell 13%, with the difference linked less to market conditions than to outward-facing brand-building, customer understanding and execution.
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On Greek Island of Santorini, Winemakers Try to Adapt to Heat and Drought
Reuters reports that Santorini’s winegrowers are battling severe heat and drought, with Assyrtiko output falling sharply and old kouloura-trained vines dying after extreme conditions from 2023 to 2025. Producers are testing treated wastewater irrigation, new planting layouts, subsurface watering and atmospheric water harvesting, as the island’s water pressure is intensified by tourism and wider Mediterranean climate stress.
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Climate Inversion, Learning From the New World
Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News reports that climate change may be reversing the traditional flow of viticultural knowledge, with producers in hot or humid regions such as India and Brazil offering lessons to European growers now facing compressed ripening windows, water stress and higher heat pressure. The piece argues that Old World regions may increasingly need practical ideas from places once seen as peripheral, including canopy protection, irrigation precision, drought-resistant rootstocks and a more flexible approach to grape selection and wine style.
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Top 6 findings From the ProWein Sparkling Report
The Drinks Business reports that ProWein’s latest Sparkling Report points to a split sparkling wine market, with Champagne down to 266 million bottles sold in 2025, Crémant hitting a record of nearly 123 million bottles, Prosecco still growing, Cava falling sharply, and alcohol-free sparkling wine gaining momentum, especially in Germany.
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Online Searches ‘Through the Roof’ for Sancerre and Chilled Reds
The Drinks Business reports that Google’s Summergeist Trends Report shows a sharp rise in searches for Sancerre and chilled red wine, with Sancerre reaching “breakout search” status and some related search terms up by 5,000% or more. The article links the Sancerre spike partly to pop-culture exposure, while chilled reds appear to be moving from niche habit to mainstream summer behaviour, with Beaujolais also gaining search interest.
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First British-Made Sparkling Wine Bottle Enters Production
Croxsons and Encirc have begun production of Sovereign, the UK’s first British-made sparkling wine bottle, created for English and Welsh producers as the sector expands and seeks a domestic alternative to imported glass. Made in Cheshire with 49% post-consumer recycled glass, the amber bottle offers up to 99% UV protection, supports a more localised and resilient supply chain, and is already being adopted by producers including Three Choirs and Ridgeview.