Climate change and harsh weather in France bring challenges to Chablis wine country

LIGNORELLES, France (AP) — On a brisk late September morning in the heart of Chablis wine country, grape pickers haul large and heavy buckets over their shoulders, drenched in sweat as they climb the very steep slope of the Vau de Vey vineyard.

It's the final day of the harvest at the Domaine Roland Lavantureux winery, and workers are handpicking the last of the prized Chardonnay grapes that will eventually be transformed into the bright and high-end Premier Cru that is bottled by the estate.

But wine lovers around the world may struggle to get their hands on the 2024 “millesime” — wine that comes from a single year's harvest. It will be available in smaller quantities than usual.

Much of France’s wine country faced one of the wettest years on record in 2024 so far amid a changing climate, after years of challenges to vineyards and wine quality caused by drought and heat. At the Lavantureux estate, the picking lasted just nine days — about half the usual time — after a year of unpredictably harsh weather marked by frost, hail, record rainfall and the spread of a dangerous fungus that has left Chablis growers on edge.

“I have been working here since 2010. This is my most difficult year,” says winemaker David Lavantureux, who follows in the footsteps of his father Roland, a winemaker himself. “And all the old-timers will tell you the same thing. It’s been a very difficult year because the weather has been so unpredictable. We have not been spared a single thing.”

The ordeal began in April with the frost. Then in May, a double hailstorm pummeled the region. Then came relentless rain, right up to the harvest. According to the Burgundy wine federation, some 1,000 hectares (nearly 2,500 acres) of vines in the Chablis country were affected by the May storm. And the excess moisture allowed a destructive mildew fungus to thrive.

Once entrenched, the disease causes huge crop losses and can also affect wine quality. Together with his brother Arnaud, David fought hard to try and control mildew with various treatments, which were washed away by the rain and didn't prove effective.

“On our estate, we’re looking at losses of 60 to 65%,” David Lavantureux said. “It’s going to be a low-yield year.”

The weather impact wasn't confined to the Lavantureux estate. Wet conditions across France have wreaked havoc on many wine-growing regions this year. Mildew, combined with episodes of frost and hail, have reduced overall production. The French ministry of agriculture estimates that it will amount to 39.3 million hectoliters, below both 2023 levels (-18%) and the average for the past five years (-11%).

“It’s been a very tough year, both physically and mentally,” Arnaud says. “We’re relieved the harvest is over. I'm exhausted.”

The challenges of this year will inevitably influence the wines produced at the family winery, resulting in a 2024 vintage with distinct characteristics.

“Balances are not at all the same,” adds Arnaud. “There’s more acidity. Maturity is less optimal. But the goal is to craft the wine so that, in the end, the balance is as perfect as possible."

Located in the northern part of the Bourgogne region, the vineyards of Chablis have traditionally benefited from a favorable climate — cold winters, hot summers and annual rainfall between 650-700 millimeters (25-27 inches).

But climate change is altering those conditions, bringing unseasonably mild weather, more abundant rainfall, and recurrent spring frosts that were less common in the past.

The frost damage is particularly frustrating. A similar phenomenon hit French vineyards in recent years, leading to big financial losses. And scientists believe the damaging 2021 frost was made more likely by climate change.

“There was a period when we thought that with global warming setting in, Chablis would be safe from frost,” David Lavantureux says. “And finally, over the last 15 years, it’s come back even stronger.”

To adapt, winemakers have been adopting creative solutions. Cutting the wines later helps delay bud burst and reduce the vulnerability to late frost, while keeping a larger foliage above the fruit shields the grapes from the scorching sun in hot summers.

During frost threats, many growers use expensive methods such as lighting candles in the vineyards. They also install electric lines to warm the vines, or spray water on the buds to create a thin ice layer that ensures the blossom’s temperature remains around freezing point but doesn't dip much lower.

Throughout the Burgundy region, anti-hail devices have also been deployed in a bid to lessen the intensity of hailstorms.

“It helps reduce risk, but it’s never 100% protection,” David Lavantureux says. “We saw that again this year with several hailstorms, two of which were particularly severe.”

Fortunately for the Lavantureux family, two very good years in 2022 and 2023 should help mitigate the financial losses induced by the reduced 2024 harvest as international demand for Chablis remains solid, especially in the United States.

In June, the Burgundy wine association said that Chablis wine exports to the U.S. reached 3 million bottles, generating 368 million euros ($410 million), a 19% increase compared to the previous year.

“We’ve put this harvest behind us," says Arnaud Lavantureux “Now it's time to think on the next one.”

Marine Lesprit contributed to this report.

Bottles of Chablis white wine on display at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Arnaud Lavantureux, 35, co-owner of Domaine Lavantureux, is photographed between barrels of Chardonay wine in the cellar of the property, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

David Lavantureux, 39, co-owner of Domaine Lavantureux, is photographed at the property, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

A grape-picker loads Chardonnay grapes to a truck at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Grape-pickers sorting and taking Chardonnay grapes to the press at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Grape-pickers sorting and taking Chardonnay grapes to the press at Domaine Lavantureux , in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Grape-pickers harvests Chardonnay grapes at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

A grape-picker puts Chardonnay grapes into a bucket at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

A grape-picker displays Chardonnay grapes attacked by the fungal deases mildew at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

A grape-picker harvests Chardonnay grapes at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Chardonnay grapes are photographed at Domaine Lavantureux , in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

A grape-picker harvests Chardonnay grapes at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Leaves of Chardonnay grapes with fungal disease, who causing major crop losses are photographed at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Aerial view of grape-pickers harvests Chardonnay grapes at Domaine Lavantureux, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Aerial view of the Domaine Lavantureux vineyards, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

A grape-pickers harvests Chardonnay grapes at Domaine Lavantureux vineyards, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

Grape-pickers harvests Chardonnay grapes at Domaine Lavantureux vineyards, in Chablis, Burgundy region, France, Wednesday, Sept. 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard)

PASADENA, Calif. (AP) — Dillon Gabriel threw three touchdown passes and moved up in the NCAA record books as eighth-ranked Oregon rolled to a 34-13 victory over UCLA on Saturday night in its first Big Ten game.

Tez Johnson had 11 receptions for 121 yards and two TDs as the Ducks (4-0, 1-0 Big Ten) picked up their 12th victory in their last 13 meetings against the Bruins. Jordan James added 103 yards rushing and a touchdown on 20 carries.

Oregon took control in the first half as it scored on its first five possessions. The Ducks are unbeaten after four games for the second straight year, and third since 2015.

“It was a complete game in a lot of ways,” Oregon coach Dan Lanning said. “I thought Dillon had a really positive performance outside of one play. I think he continues to prove that he's a savvy quarterback. He did a good job of utilizing his feet when the first answer wasn't there and moving on to the next look.”

UCLA (1-3, 0-2) has dropped three straight in DeShaun Foster's first season as coach.

Gabriel — who completed 31 of 41 passes for 280 yards — became the fourth Football Bowl Subdivision player to reach 16,000 yards passing for his career and moved into a three-way tie for third with 134 touchdown passes.

The sixth-year senior has 16,059 yards in 54 games at three different schools. He played parts of three seasons at UCF before transferring to Oklahoma, where he played in 2022 and '23. Gabriel decided to play his final year at Oregon because the Hawaii native wanted to play closer to home.

“I'm trusting the guys. When you get the ball in the playmakers hands they make plays,” Gabriel said. “The trust and belief are there but more importantly guys are elite with what they did.”

Gabriel's best pass came midway through the second quarter when he connected with Johnson for a 52-yard touchdown.

Johnson blew past UCLA’s coverage, caught the ball at the 10 and went untouched into the end zone to extend the Ducks' lead to three touchdowns. Tight end Kenyon Sadiq then lined up at quarterback and threw a pass to Terrance Ferguson for the 2-point conversion to extend Oregon's lead to 25-3.

Johnson then had a 12-yard grab near the back of the end zone early in the fourth quarter to make it 34-13. It is the second time this season and sixth in his career that the senior has had double-digit catches.

“I see confidence, poise and trust in his teammates," Johnson said. "When you have a quarterback like that back there it is comfortable as a receiver to run each play. You love that because you don't have to think about it too much.”

Gabriel's other touchdown pass came on Oregon's opening possession of Big Ten play when Traeshon Johnson's reception for 11 yards capped an 11-play, 75-yard series.

Gabriel's only mistake came late in the second quarter when Bryan Addison had a 96-yard pick six to get the Bruins to 28-10 at halftime.

On third-and-goal at the UCLA 6, Gabriel scrambled out of the pocket and threw it as Johnson slipped while making a cut. That allowed Addison, who began his career at Oregon, to easily pick off the pass and run it back for UCLA's first interception return for a TD since Jaylin Davies in the 2022 Sun Bowl against Pittsburgh.

Bruins quarterback Ethan Garbers was 12 of 20 for 118 yards and two interceptions. The senior was sacked four times and left the game during the fourth quarter with what appeared to be an ankle injury.

“If you know Ethan, you know he was fighting to stay out there. So when you have a player that’s begging to stay out there and he wanted to keep playing, we’re gonna let him play," Foster said.

Oregon: While most of the attention goes to the offense, the defense continues to be stout. The Ducks have sacked opposing quarterbacks 11 times and is allowing only 154.8 passing yards per game.

UCLA: The Bruins' offense under first-year coordinator Eric Bieniemy has gone six quarters since it last reached the end zone.

Oregon should move up at least one spot after sixth-ranked Mississippi's loss to Kentucky.

Oregon: Welcomes Michigan State on Friday night in the Ducks' first Big Ten home game.

UCLA: Travels to ninth-ranked Penn State in what will be a 9 a.m. PDT kickoff on Saturday.

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UCLA quarterback Ethan Garbers throws a pass during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Oregon, Saturday, Sept. 28, 2024, in Pasadena, Calif. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)