French vines now at the flowering stage

n many vineyards flowering is in progress or about to start. The vintage looks early.

High temperatures continued to promote vine growth. At the end of May in areas spared by hail in Gironde, canes had grown by 15 to 25 cm and flowering was starting. In Charente, flowering was also imminent.

8 to 10 days early in Champagne

In Côte d'Or, flowering was well underway in the Côte. Stages were consistent from one grape variety and area to the next and the advance in development was similar to 2017. In Champagne, flowering had also started and the vines were 8 to 10 days earlier than the last ten-year average.

A vintage that promises to be early

In the South, stages were even more advanced. In Vaucluse, vineyards ranged from “full flowering –nouaison” for the earliest and "first flowers" for the latest, putting them roughly on a par with 2017. In the Côtes du Rhône, flowering is ongoing and the vintage looks early. In Languedoc, stages varied from “8 to 9 leaves” in the late-ripening sectors to “full flowering” in early-ripening areas.