Global wine shortage could hit in 2018

(FOX NEWS) -- Time to stock up, wine lovers: a global wine shortage could be on the horizon due to an internationally poor harvest through 2017. Worldwide wine production fell by 8 percent this year, culminating in the worst wine shortage in 50 years, the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIVW) reports.

According to VinePair, Europe is experiencing its worst grape harvest since 1982. Extremely cold weather through the spring and droughts through the summer severely damaged much of the continent's grape supply. Furthermore, Italy, France and Spain, the world's three largest wine producers, are expected to produce just 14.5 billion liters of wine, a 14 percent drop from 2016.

"This drop is consecutive to climate hazards, which affected the main producing countries, particularly in Europe," said OIVW, Yahoo News reports.

In addition at home in the U.S., the outbreak of wildfires in California have scorched thousands of acres of the state's fruitful wine country, from Napa Valley to Sonoma County.

Read more about this story at FOXNews.com.