Bonfire of the vineyards gathers pace in Bordeaux

We live in Entre-deux-Mers, a Bordeaux wine appellation situated between the tidal reaches of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers – in effect, we are “between two seas”. 

We are not one of Bordeaux’s major wine-growing areas so find ourselves at the eye of a perfect storm which threatens the viability of French wine production.

The village has, over the last 18 months, seen many parcels of vines pulled up and burnt. The vacant land is currently being left to grass, or left wild, and the character of our community has seen a fundamental change. 

Read more: Wine in cardboard bottles hits French supermarkets 

We are not alone: what is happening and why?

Amanda Moore of The Naked Vigneron in Sainte-Foy-Bordeaux explained that when they bought their vineyard, in 2010, they had consecutive years of good production until, in 2017, the vineyard suffered terribly from frost and they lost 95% of the harvest. 

This did not concern them greatly as they knew that in any form of crop production you have to factor in one disastrous year for every seven. 

Even so, the event encouraged them to diversify. The situation did not improve after 2017 and diversification proved the right way forward. They have now found a viable balance between growing smaller quantities of quality organic wines and hosting wine tourism events.

Another Bordeaux winemaker, Charlotte Krajewski of Clos Cantenac and Chateau Seraphine, in St Emilion and Pomerol, believes that by watching overheads, they can trade through the current crisis. She hopes it will last no more than five years – during which time she envisages a big shift in Bordeaux wine-growing patterns. 

Beyond that, there is the possibility of taking up small areas of vines in the short term, allowing the land to rest before it returns to wine production.

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Failed wine harvests

Elsewhere in the vineyards of Bordeaux, things may never go back to the old normal as 2018 was the last “proper” harvest. 

Since then there have been “once in every seven years” events almost annually – Covid, bad weather, increased competition, changing attitudes to both Bordeaux red wines and alcohol consumption in general, and now political mayhem. 

The result has been catastrophic for producers – especially those with bigger vineyards and who deal with negociants (merchants) rather than sell directly. There has been too much wine, some of very poor quality, and not enough consumers.

The French government and the EU have tried to manage the situation nationally with a variety of aid packages. Initially, they bought the excess wine and turned it into industrial alcohol, but this managed the symptoms rather than the root cause of the problem – which is excess supply.

Winemakers were then paid to take up vines. This was both to reduce supply and ensure that cash-strapped vignerons did not leave their vines unmanaged to become a haven for pests and diseases, which then infect healthy neighbouring vineyards. 

In the winter of 2024, before they started to burst into leaf, the vines surrounding our house were removed. The vinestocks and stakes were piled into bonfires leaving open land to lie fallow. This winter, the exercise has been replicated throughout Entre-deux-Mers and, no doubt, beyond.

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Replacing vines with olive trees

EU policy appears to have been to pay people to leave their land for “renaturalisation” but financial inducements have also encouraged replanting with crops such as olives. Whatever course the landowner takes, however, the result will be that the denuded land is reclassified and cannot be used for growing vines in the foreseeable future. 

So what of the future? There are still lots of vines in our village and Bordeaux wine is still being produced in volume, but one hopes that a balance is being struck which will enable a manageable and attractive supply of French wine plus a return to mixed land use rather than a monoculture.

With luck, the ultimate result will be an ecologically beneficial combination of agriculture and viticulture, and an environment which is much more in tune with the needs of our planet and the evolving demands of its population.