France's Wine Country Hasn't Struggled Like This Since '50s

France's wine vats are on track to be the emptiest they've been in roughly seven decades. The nation's Agriculture Ministry says 2026 output is expected to slip another 6% from 2025's already record-low level, to about 900 million gallons—about 17% below the 2021–2025 average, per France 24. That would make it the lowest output since 1957, according to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine. Blame a one-two punch of shrinking vineyards and brutal summer heat and drought, which slammed yields unevenly across regions.

"Conditions had initially looked promising, with good grape development and low disease pressure," notes Politico. "But 'the hot and dry conditions of the summer degraded this potential,'" according to the Agricultural Ministry's stats service. Champagne is set to be hit hardest, with production forecast to be about half of both last year's level and the five-year average, per France 24. Languedoc-Roussillon is a rare bright spot, with a modest rebound from 2025, though still below its recent five-year average. Paris has pledged more than $1.2 billion in emergency aid for farmers, a sum that industry groups argue doesn't cover the damage.