Before I get to global news, some site news – on 20 May we announced that our guest judge for this year’s wine writing competition is Hugh Johnson OBE. Hugh is the world’s best-selling wine writer. He’s responsible for Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine Book and he created the World Atlas of Wine in 1971. He was the sole author of the World Atlas for four editions before asking Jancis to join him as co-author for the fifth edition, published in 2001. As updates for the ninth edition are currently under way, it feels especially fitting to have him as our guest judge.
Severe storms and hail all over France
May has not been a good month for French winegrowers.
As I mentioned two weeks ago, on 3 May hailstorms affected between 500 and 1,000 ha (around 1,250–2,500 acres) in Champagne.
On 3 and 4 May, Madiran was hit with golf-ball-sized hailstones that affected 300 ha (740 acres) – around 23% of the AOC. 100 of those hectares were completely stripped of green growth and are not expected to yield grapes this vintage.
On 10 May, Bordeaux saw hail that caused damage starting around Langon and continuing south of Graves, impacting production in the generic appellations of Bordeaux and in Entre-deux-Mers. In certain areas damage reached 100%. Affected producers are angry as the area hosts anti-hail generators for which they pay €1.5 per hectare – regardless of whether they’re utilised or not – and which can deploy silver iodine nuclei to break up hailstones, thereby lessening the potential for damage. The intervention threshold for using these generators was raised from 30% likelihood of hail to 40% likelihood as of 31 March of this year because of insufficient funding for Adelfa 33, the organisation responsible for deployment. The storm on the 10th was forecast at 35% likelihood – falling just under threshold. Maxime Barreau, head of Château Haut-Garriga, told Vitisphere that the generators have not been deployed any of the five times that the region suffered hail damage since 2019. On 20 May, Vitisphere reported that Dominique Fédieu, president of Adelfa 33, would temporarily lower the activation threshold to 30%.
On 11 May, Roussillon and the Languedoc experienced rain and hailstorms that caused minor damage in the Côtes du Roussillon-Villages appellation. Eastern Languedoc was hit by intense rains, and some hail fell in Faugères. Two days later, hail hit vineyards on the west coast of France near Irouléguy and near the eastern border of the country between Bugey and Savoie, and on 19 May, hail caused 60–70% damage to 700 ha (1,730 acres) west of Limoux.
On 12 May heavy rains fell in the Var region, affecting the Côtes de Provence appellation. Eight days later, on 20 May, while soils were still saturated, certain areas of Provence received 230 mm (9 in) of rain within an hour, damaging infrastructure and submerging vineyards. Damage is still being assessed but appears to be very localised and concentrated around Lavandou, Cavalaire and Vidauban.
Australian wine exports surge
Wine Australia’s recent export report, released at the end of April, details a 41% increase in exports from March 2024 to March 2025, resulting in a total export value of AU$2.64 billion. This growth can be attributed to a rebound in exports to mainland China. The hefty tariffs that China had imposed on Australian wine in 2020 – which reached highs of 218% – were lifted in March 2024. In the most recent export report, China accounted for 39% of Australian wine export value – up from next to nothing. Exports to the rest of the world were the lowest in a decade, declining 13% in value and 9% in volume.
Fine-wine market takes a hit
In April Liv-Ex’s Fine Wine 100, which monitors the prices that the 100 most sought-after wines available on the secondary market trade at, reported a 30.2% decline in trading month-on-month – the most significant decline since August of 2023. The decline has been attributed to the uncertainty surrounding tariffs and to the fact that many members of the trade were occupied with en primeur tasting during the month of April. Speaking of which …
2024 bordeaux en primeur update
As I have mentioned for the last few weeks, you can find coverage of 2024 EP release prices and the relative value they might offer in our forum. In terms of major announcements this past week, Cos d’Estournel, Haut-Brion, Figeac, Léoville Poyferré, Léoville Las Cases and Pavie have all announced EP prices significantly lower than 2023 EP prices … a few of these are attractive enough that I’m considering buying a few bottles EP for the first time in my career.
That’s all for this episode of the wine news. If you enjoy this newscast and would like to see it continue, please subscribe to JancisRobinson.com. And if you have breaking news in your area, please email [email protected].
This is a transcript of our weekly five-minute news broadcast, which you can watch below. You can also listen to it on The Wine News in 5 Podcast. If you enjoy this content and would like to see more like it, please subscribe to our site and our weekly newsletter.
