First to harvest in France this year was (according to what is claimed) a wine producer in Rivesaltes: Domaine Rombeau. They started already on August 12, which on the other hand is just about what they usually do, says the owner M de la Fabrègue.
Rivesaltes is a wine district in southern France, close to the Spanish border and near Perpignan. They make primarily so called VDN wines (vins doux naturels) which means that they use a similar method to making port wine: after fermenting the must for a few days grape alcohol is added to stop the fermentation. You get a sweet, grapey wine similar to young ports. More info on: www.lejournalduvin.com