However, the wine tourism sector has not escaped unscathed, with some 224,000 people evacuating the region, including a spate of tourists. Also, harvest is still quite a way off, so we aren’t worried about smoke taint for the grapes.” Much attention has been credited to the risk of smoke taint in Bordeaux, which occurs when compounds released by wildfire smoke are absorbed into grape skins. Smoke taint ‘not necessarily a cause for concern’But smoke taint proves a sticky debate in the wine world. Cité du Vin: ‘the economic effects were immediate’And chateaux were not the only businesses impacted in the wine sector.