PARIS (AP)—French Champagne producers decided Aug. 18 to put unprecedented limits on the quantity of grapes they’ll harvest this year in hopes of propping up prices and containing damage from the coronavirus pandemic.
As a result, record amounts of grapes may need to be destroyed or sold to distilleries at discounted prices. But for the Champagne Committee, the influential group that represents 16,000 vintners around France’s Champagne region, that’s the price to pay for saving their luxury business.
