The State of France

Posted: 7th October 2022

I got back from a few days in Provence in the middle of the month. It had been one of those vintages again: day after day at over forty degrees Celsius. My host told me that on many days he had been unable to leave his quarters before ten o’clock at night. The real problem is that this is now the norm. Cooler, wetter vintages like 2021 are exceptional; and the wines get more and more alcoholic as a result. Long ago I suggested planting Carignan or Cinsault to add to the reds; cultivars that can be picked at 12.5, give a lot of juice, and work well in tandem with Grenache and Syrah. At these temperatures Grenache might bring you sixteen percent, and it oxidises easily. Carignan is a good antioxidant and it can bring the wine down to a more modest 13.5.

I am told this will now happen. The wines are very good, but when your dinner drink nudges fifteen degrees it limits the number of glasses you might safely consume. And it is not just Provence: I met a Bordeaux grower this week who told me about a Pinot Noir he’d had from Sancerre in the ‘temperate’ Loire. It was fifteen degrees. ‘It tasted like Grenache!’ He said.