Old Vine Registry reaches new milestone
The Old Vine Registry is a crowdsourced online database cataloguing vineyards with vines over 35 years of age, searchable by vineyard name, vine age, location and variety. It started in 2010 as a spreadsheet of old-vine vineyards that Tamlyn and Jancis created and updated, with volunteers chipping in. Then, three years ago, our Alder Yarrow turned that spreadsheet into an online database, the not-for-profit Old Vine Conference became the new owner of the registry and Jackson Family Wines made an investment to make launching the site possible – which happened in June 2023.
At the time of launch there were 2,183 ‘registered’ vineyards. In the 2 years and 9 months since then, 7,818 new vineyard entries have been verified and added to this database – reaching 10,001 registered vineyards on 25 March. The listings span 42 countries, 1,144 grape varieties and 40,900 ha (over 101,000 acres). Massive congratulations to Alder and to everyone who has helped to make The Old Vine Registry a success over the years! And if you have a vineyard that was planted in 1991 or earlier and it isn’t registered, why haven’t you submitted it yet?
Frost hits France
France has seen an unusually warm and wet start to the growing season – prompting vines to come out of dormancy about two weeks early in many regions and making them more sensitive to cold temperatures. Last night, 26 March, temperatures plummeted to dangerously low levels, affecting vineyards in parts of Burgundy, Champagne, Alsace and Savoie. Vineyard owners attempted to combat frost with paraffin candles in vineyard rows, wind machines, sprinkler systems, heating wires and new infrared systems, but not all producers have the funds for robust frost mitigation systems. In Chablis, where temperatures dropped as low as -6.5 °C (20 °F), only about 5% of vineyards are protected. Losses in yield are expected, as are two more days of freezing nighttime temperatures in Champagne, Burgundy, Alsace and Savoie according to Météo Express.
Asti sparkling rosé introduced
As of 24 March, Asti DOCG wines can be rosé. Previously the DOCG applied only to white wines made from at least 97% Moscato Bianco.
Asti rosé will require 70–90% Moscato Bianco eligible for the Asti DOCG and 10–30% Brachetto grapes eligible for the Brachetto d’Acqui DOCG, which lies within the Asti DOCG production area. The rosé can be made at all sweetness levels, from extra brut to dolce, and by the tank method or by the traditional method; if the latter, it will be labelled Asti Metodo Classico.
Moscato d’Asti, a separate category that is frizzante, always sweet and lower alcohol, will continue to apply solely to white wine made from at least 97% Moscato Bianco.
Sula buys Moët Hennessy production facility
On 26 March, Just Drinks reported that Chandon will cease production in India. Moët Hennessy has sold the Chandon production facility and estate in Nashik, in the Indian state of Maharashtra, to Sula, India’s largest wine producer. The deal includes 19 acres (7.7 ha), five of which are planted with vineyards, plus a visitor centre and the winery.
Georgia instigates vineyard planting controls
On 11 March Georgia Today broke the news that, as of 1 May 2026, the country of Georgia will require companies or individuals wishing to establish a commercial vineyard to apply for approval with the National Wine Agency of Georgia. The regulation is intended to boost quality by taking into account soil, location and variety prior to planting. This is comparable to the work done by France’s INAO – which oversees the production standards, quality control and geographical boundaries for the French wine industry and issues formal authorisations for all new plantings and replantings. This week The Drinks Business published an article stating that the NGO ‘Transparency International-Georgia’ has warned that the new law increases the risk of corruption by putting the National Wine Agency of Georgia in a position to regulate market access.
EU–Australia free-trade deal
On 24 March the EU and Australia concluded negotiations on a free-trade agreement. This deal still needs to be approved by the European Council and Parliament before it can be signed, a process that could take up to two years. In addition to eliminating tariffs between the two countries, the agreement includes protection for all EU wine GIs, covering 1,650 names in Australia. Producers of Australian Prosecco – who maintain that Prosecco is a grape variety – will have a 10-year phase-out period after which products labelled ‘Prosecco’ will no longer be allowed to be exported.* The term will still be allowed on products sold in the domestic market.
South Africa harvest update
On 20 March, Winetitles reported that South Africa is approximately three-quarters done with harvest, and quality looks to be very good.
Washington State’s early budbreak
On 25 March, Northwest Wine Report published news of budbreak in Columbia Valley’s White Bluffs appellation at Sagemoor vineyard – about two weeks ahead of recent averages.
That’s all for this episode of the wine news. I’ll be switching this newscast to once every other week, so my next newscast will be on 11 April. If you enjoy this newscast and would like to see it continue, please become a member of JancisRobinson.com. And if you have breaking news in your area, please email [email protected].
*30 March 2026 – The video and audio newscast associated with this transcript (and a previous version of this transcript) states that, under the new free-trade agreement, Australian products labelled ‘Prosecco’ will no longer be allowed to be sold to the EU. Australian ‘Prosecco’ has not been allowed to be sold in the EU since the protection of the Prosecco GI within the EU, effective 2009. The new EU–Australia deal restricts exports of Australian ‘Prosecco’ to any country.
Photo at top of Asti vineyards shrouded in fog; courtesy of the Consorzio Asti DOCG.
This is a transcript of our regular five-minute news broadcast, which you can watch above. 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 become a member of our site and subscribe to our weekly newsletter.
