Less quantity but beautiful grapes: the 2024 wine vintage looks promising around the Thau basin

Après la précocité des millésimes 2022 et 2023, la période de vendanges a été plus proche des normes en 2024. Midi Libre – MICHAEL ESDOURRUBAILH

Les vendanges sont désormais terminées pour toutes les appellations du territoire. Elles sont marquées par une perte quantitative mais des jus prometteurs qui laissent espérer un millésime qualitatif.

Less juice but nice juices. The formula is simplified but it is not far from characterizing the 2024 harvest in the Thau basin as, moreover, in the whole of Languedoc. Muscats, Picpoul-de-Pinet, Languedoc, Pays-d’Hérault, Grés-de-Montpellier… : while the harvests have just finished in some places, notably in Villeveyrac, all the appellations are not far from being housed in the same boat.

"The juices in vats are promising"

Overall, the harvest is lower this year: – 15% for the Muscat de Frontignan, around – 10% for the Picpoul-de-pinet, up to – 20 or – 30% depending on the plots in certain estates (Les 3 Mazets, in Villeveyrac). “After two generous years, the vines have shown some signs of fatigue despite the fine spring weather conditions. But the juices in the vats are promising", they explain at the Hondrat estate (Villeveyrac).

Because the atypical weather, marked by a wet spring and early summer, then by drought and north wind, gave an atypical harvest. It took place on dates in line with normal where it had been early in 2021 and 2022. It generated less mildew here than in Hérault and Gard.

“We started in swimsuits on August 26 and finished in down jackets on September 27!”

But the vintage that will come out of it should be qualitative. “Our Cinsaults are superb and”overall, we are very happy with the harvest. We have fresher juices. The vintage is looking good even if it has been a little longer: we started in swimsuits on August 26 and finished in down jackets on September 27", observes Valéry Ibanez, from the Roquemale estate (Villeveyrac). "The year has been complicated but the result will be interesting: qualitatively, we will be good", adds Luc Fonta, from the Les 3 Mazets estate.

The Picpoul-de-pinet, which began its harvest on September 9 at the Ormarine cellar (Pinet) and finished at the beginning of the week at the Montagnac and Pinet cellars, also recorded a surplus of rainfall. “It did good and avoided water stress” without however swelling the grapes: the harvest will be around 80,000 hectoliters, compared to 90,000 in the best years. “Although the harvest was lower than hoped, the quality was controlled until bout", assures Céleste Renault, the director of the union.

As the saying goes, "holiness is not a matter of quantity, but of quality".

A well-managed month of August for Frontignan muscat

“This year, we decided to give it a try and start a little earlier. Initially, we start on August 15th. There, it was at the beginning of the month. The degree was there a few days earlier. This allowed us to bring in the grapes in a more spread out manner and to better manage the peaks in supply.”

President of the Muscat de Frontignan cellar, William Juan gives a satisfactory assessment of the 2024 harvest, even if it will be nearly 15% lower than a normal year (11,000 hectolitres compared to 12,000) due to a lack of water in July and windy spells that dried out the vines in early August. “But the quality is there. And our small-grain muscat, which is not very sensitive to mildew, has protected us from it”, adds the president.

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