The Local France

VIDEO: Former Melbourne hairdresser becomes France's top female winemaker

Thu, 28 Jan 2021 09:53:09 +0100

Jane Eyre was cutting hair in Australia in 1998 when a chance encounter with a customer led to work experience at a Burgundy vineyard.

French wine country unveils its answer to kobe beef

Fri, 17 Nov 2017 17:06:10 +0100

As the unofficial capital of France's Burgundy region, Beaune is a town that thrives on wine -- and now even its cows are going to taste like grapes.

Grape thieves pilfer what's left of Burgundy wine harvests

Tue, 27 Sep 2016 12:25:45 +0200

Fed up with seeing thieves pilfer their precious grapes, vineyard owners in the famous region of Burgundy are taking extreme measures for the first time.

The wine legend who helped put Burgundy on the world map

Mon, 11 Jan 2016 09:11:18 +0100

Aubert de Villaine, the French winemaker whose prestigious Romanee-Conti is one of the world's most expensive wines has helped put the vineyards of his beloved Burgundy on the global map of cultural landmarks.

Burgundy 'will be ruined by wind farms'

Thu, 17 Apr 2014 19:11:00 +0200

The famous Burgundy region of France is synonymous with its vineyards but its image will soon be ruined, campaigners say, by the planned construction of new wind turbines. They say their chances of gaining UNESCO world heritage status are threatened.

Prices of French wines soar after poor harvest

Mon, 17 Mar 2014 18:02:00 +0100

The prices of some French wines have shot up more than 30 percent since the summer due to a historically weak grape harvest in 2013, that has left the good stuff in short supply, according to data released on Monday.

Winemaker faces jail for shunning pesticides

Mon, 24 Feb 2014 10:33:00 +0100

A winemaker in France's Burgundy region is due to face court on Monday for refusing to use pesticides in his organic vineyard despite a government order. Other wine-growers around the region are backing the government.

Chinese bidder scoops €130k barrel of Burgundy

Mon, 18 Nov 2013 09:56:00 +0100

A Chinese woman won the bidding for a coveted barrel of Burgundy wine at a Christie's-run charity auction in France on Sunday, paying €131,000 ($177,000) for her cask.

Champagne production set to overflow this year

Thu, 08 Aug 2013 16:35:15 +0200

Champagne-lovers had cause to celebrate on Thursday, as official statistics predicted a massive 56-percent rise in production of bubbly in France this year.

Wine growers call for aid with more storms due

Tue, 06 Aug 2013 15:54:00 +0200

Wine growers in Bordeaux held an emergency meeting on Monday after thousands of acres of vineyards were destroyed in hail storms. With more extreme weather forecast, there could be worse news for Bordeaux and Burgundy vineyard-owners.

Burgundy vineyards face 'catastrophe' after storms

Wed, 24 Jul 2013 17:12:00 +0200

Prestigious vineyards in France's famous wine region of Burgundy's were devastated by hail storms this week. It is the second year running the famous wine region has been hit by storms, with one producer calling it a "catastrophe". More storms are forecast.

VIDEO: Angry voters confront Hollande on tour

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 11:49:00 +0100

President François Hollande this week launched a major effort to ‘win back the French people’. Dijon voters had harsh words for him and partner Valérie Trierweiler, while one enterprising graduate gave him something else: a CV.

'Here, you can spend all day out in the sun'

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 11:00:00 +0100

This week, Norwegian-born DIY design blogger Hege Morris guides us around the south-western region of Poitou-Charentes, where she lives with her husband and their son. She tells The Local all about her nine years in the small town of Mazerolles.

'Burgundy is about much more than just wine'

Fri, 15 Feb 2013 16:11:00 +0100

In this week's edition of My France tour guide Tracy Thurling takes us on a trip around Burgundy, the epitome of rural France, and tells us why it has so much to offer and why she could never live anywhere else.

President hops aboard new high-speed train

Thu, 08 Sep 2011 13:20:33 +0200

President Sarkozy will launch a new section of the country's high-speed rail network on Thursday when he takes a trip on the new Rhin-Rhône branch.