from Decanter e-alert
Jim Budd

The Muscadet vineyards at the western end of the Loire Valley have had their
potential 2008 harvest reduced by half following a severe frost last week.

Although reports of the damage caused by the frost on the night of 6 April
varied, initial fears that around half of the vintage had been wiped out
have now been confirmed.

Elodie Besseas, of the regional wine trade body Interloire, said vines
around Bouaye, 10km southwest of Nantes, were so badly hit, 'the loss is up
to 100%.'

'At the moment we are looking at a 50% loss overall,' Besseas, who is
technical expert for the Loire Valley vineyards from Nantes to Blois, told
decanter.com. 'There are considerable variations from sector to sector. In
June, once the flowering is over, we will be able to produce a final
estimate of the size of the 2008 Muscadet vintage.'

Producers echoed Besseas' findings.

'This is the worst frost since 1991,' Jerome Choblet of Domaine des
Herbauges, told decanter.com. 'The damage to the buds is between 60%-80%.
Because the frost occurred much earlier than in 1991, we hope that the
second-generation buds will develop well and make up a lot of the deficit.'

Muscadet has already suffered from small harvests in both 2007 and 2006.
Last year's harvest was down by 16% due to frost and mildew.

'We have no stock,' said Choblet.

Some Muscadet producers, including Guy Bossard, were particularly badly hit
by mildew in 2007, with Bossard only producing nine hectolitres per hectare.

Besseas also said that there had been some frost damage further up the
valley in Anjou, which includes the appellations of Savennieres, Coteaux du
Layon and Saumur-Champigny wines. Although the damage is expected to be much
less than that in Muscadet, it will be ten days before its extent is known.

JT