Bordeaux — Violent hailstorms have ravaged parts of the Bordeaux wine region in France, causing major damage in hundreds of vineyards and destroying thousands of hectares of vines, producers said on Monday. This comes just a year after the region suffered one of its worst harvests in history with a fall of 39% due to late frosts, which led to a rise in prices. The hail first hit the south of the region on Saturday, affecting the Pessac-Leognan region and the south of Medoc, home to some of the region’s most famous chateaux, said Bernard Farges, head of Bordeaux producers’ union CIVB. It then devastated vineyards of Cotes de Bourg and Cotes de Blaye on the right bank of the Gironde River and, further east, in the Gensac and Pessac-sur-Dordogne regions. The vineyard of Cognac was also damaged. Officials mention an initial figure of 10,000ha affected out of a total of 70,000ha. They had also been affected by frosts in 2017. "The figures, which will have to be refined, show that between...
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