French winemakers dread 'smoky taste' after wildfires

In the last row of his fields in southeastern France, the wind rustled through the brown leaves of vines that overheated during a blaze that swept the region this summer.But plants further away were largely intact, with enough green leaves for their grapes to continue to mature in time for harvest next week.Guibergia said he was lucky after several wildfires in the surrounding Var region in recent weeks, which sent thousands of people fleeing -- including Hollywood star George Clooney and his family -- and destroyed more than 6,000 hectares (15,000 acres) of land.But "the big question is whether or not we will have a burnt taste during the wine making", Guibergia told AFP."We won't know straight away."He is one of many winemakers to be worried in France's main rosé-producing region, where flames have destroyed hundreds of some 30,000 hectares of vineyards, according to expert estimates.Guibergia, who has been in the business for 25 years, said he planned to pick the grapes and turn them into wine in several separate batches to help limit damage from any contaminated fruit.But he still dreads the possibility the product of his 25-hectare vineyard in the village of Correns could be d...