Post-summer: how is the wine industry adapting to the early harvest?

Traditionally, the grape harvest takes place in early autumn, between late September and late October. But, as with mirabelle plums and wheat, it seems that the wine industry's harvest is being brought forward by a few days, or even weeks..

Yuna Lamarque

Due in particular to a long period of hot weather in June and July 2025, the grapes ripened much faster than usual, resulting in an accelerated harvest. As a result, the wine industry had to adjust its schedule to accommodate the early harvest.

The wine industry's response to the early harvest

Compared with recent years, Eric Santier of Domaine Dozon in the Chinon region is almost two weeks ahead of schedule. "Before, we used to harvest at the end of September, or even the beginning of October". This variation can be explained by the very hot weather at the beginning of the summer, especially at times when the vines were in full growth. "Right from the start, we were ahead of schedule", he explains.

It was therefore necessary to organize the harvest schedule differently, to start earlier than planned. In terms of preparation, the ways of proceeding are the same. "Maybe we just have a few less vacations," quips Olivier Morin, whose domaine is located in Chitry, Burgundy. Vat preparation, for example, is brought forward to be ready to receive the grapes earlier. Harvesting can also be carried out at staggered times, starting early in the morning and finishing at midday, to avoid the heat.

Nevertheless, these early harvests are becoming more and more frequent, as the Chitry winemaker explains: "We have more and more early years, almost one in two, if not more. Now, we regularly harvest at the beginning of September, when it's not the end of August."

One problem remains: finding pickers. "Usually, we have three or four weeks to prepare and recruit... This year, we're right in the starting-blocks!" says Eric Santier. With harvests taking place over overlapping periods, it's all the more difficult to find this human resource. Olivier Morin explains: "We have a few regulars and students during this period. We harvest some of the grapes by machine, and fortunately so! We wouldn't have the manpower to harvest by hand...".

In addition, the heat wave was accompanied in many regions by difficult weather conditions this summer. The dreaded thunderstorms and hailstorms also forced some winegrowers to get to work more quickly.

Any positives to early harvesting?

Although this may disrupt the usual harvesting schedule, Olivier Morin sees some positive points in the various changes. "It's an adaptation. We realize that with the warmer weather, the grapes are much riper than before. We're harvesting riper grapes earlier. But that's good news!" In Burgundy in particular, quality vintages are those that come from very hot summer periods. With more and more hot spells, he explains, "As it's happening more and more often, the quality of the wines has never been so interesting."

One year follows another, and no two are alike... The year 2024 was very rainy, resulting in a later harvest: "We went from one extreme to the other," explains Eric Santier.