(Decanter) - The heavy rains that have been falling across France and much of Europe for the past few weeks have halted vine growth in many regions, jeopardising flowering at a crucial time of the year.

In Burgundy, almost 400mm of rain has fallen since 27 April on the Cote d’Or - more than double the average. Growers say that the harvest is unlikely to begin before October, which will be three to four weeks late. Surveying the Domaine Marquis d’Angerville Clos des Ducs vineyard in Volnay, owner Guillaume d’Angerville pointed out the noisy and constant flow of water draining from the celebrated vineyard: ‘We’ve only had five days without rain in the last 30 days,’ he said.

Over in Beaune, Frederic Barnier, winemaking director of Louis Jadot, pointed to clouds in the sky on 28 May: ‘This is typical, about two hours of sun, and then the rain comes back – we have had more than double normal rainfall since January, and what worries me most is the lack of sun.’

Flowering has been delayed and vineyard treatments such as ploughing that would normally have been completed by now have been difficult due to muddy vineyards..