Hot, dry weather seen pushing French wine output below five-year average

PARIS (Reuters) -French wine production is expected to rise 3% from last year's rain-hit season but fall 13% from the five-year average as a heatwave and drought in August and smaller vine area cut output in some key regions, the farm ministry said on Tuesday.

France, which vies with Italy and Spain for the position of the world's largest wine producer, is expected to produce 37.4 million hectolitres (mln hl) of wine this year, it said, below an initial range of 40 mln hl-42.5 mln hl last month.

"The hot weather and drought in August affected several vineyards, particularly in Charentes, Burgundy, Beaujolais and Languedoc-Roussillon," the ministry said.

"They reduced the juice content of the grapes and accelerated the ripening of the berries, which brought forward the harvest dates in many regions and led to a decline in production potential," it added.

In addition, the reduction in vineyard area - with more than 20,000 hectares uprooted since the last harvest in Bordeaux, the South-West and Languedoc-Roussillon - also contributed to the decline in volumes, the ministry said.

France has subsidised the removal of vines to counter oversupply in the face of falling wine consumption, an approach criticised by some producers for making southern areas more vulnerable to wildfires.

Champagne will begin harvesting in early September, earlier than usual. Despite heat and poor flowering, production should exceed 2024 by 12%, though it is seen coming in 10% below the five-year average.

Bordeaux saw an early start to harvesting in mid-August, with heatwaves affecting yields. Production remains close to 2024, but 15% below the five-year average.

The Beaujolais region expects its lowest yield since 2012, the ministry said. Languedoc and the South-West also face reduced output, while the Loire anticipates increases over last year.

A hectolitre is the equivalent of 100 litres, or 133 standard wine bottles.

(Reporting by Sybille de La Hamaide; Editing by Kirsten Donovan, Bernadette Baum and Helen Popper)