It's fall, and the grape harvest has begun in many wine growing regions across Germany. Bavaria-based Master of Wine, Romana Echensperger, explains the latest trends in German wines, from chardonnay to sparkling wines.
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DW: Winegrowers have already started to harvest grapes in some parts of Germany. Will 2019 be a good vintage?
Romana Echensperger: It is going to a very good year! The winegrowers did, however, face some challenges due in particular to the heat wave — quite a few grapes were lost to sunburn. But the ripening process has slowed down a little compared to 2018, it is relatively normal. So we can look forward to a very promising vintage. Last year the yield was great, this year it will be a bit less but it's still within the normal range.
What are the key trends in German vineyards this year?
German sparkling wine is becoming increasingly popular. The quality has become incredibly good. It takes a lot of expertise, and the winegrowers are learning how to make great sparkling wine.
Chardonnay is another trend. Today, the grape is cultivated on 2,000 hectares of land, compared to about 200 hectares in the 1990s. This wine is back with a new style, not as lush, but fresh with only a dash of new oak. These wines are unbelievably good and balanced. In general, white wine is increasingly in vogue in Germany. Twenty years ago red wine was on the rise, but today people in Germany drink more white wine than red wine.
The summer of 2018 was hot and dry, as was this year. How does that affect the plants, and the wine?
Viticulture is clearly becoming more challenging. Winegrowers really struggle with weather extremes. In 2017, there was a lot of rain followed by years of heat and little precipitation. In 2017, the winegrowers plucked some of the foliage around the grapes so the air could circulate, the moisture could dry off and to prevent fungal diseases.
In 2019, they pretty much did the same — and in some regions they lost 30% of the grapes to sunburn! What was the right thing to do in 2017 was totally wrong in 2019. The winegrower has to be very watchful, and act wisely and rapidly. In the end, it always takes a bit of luck, too.
Also, winegrowers have more or less stopped using the herbicide glyphosate, for environmental reasons and with an eye on climate change.
Will winegrowers in Germany have to rethink the varieties they grow as the climate changes?
That's a big discussion at the moment, wine-growing measures can play a big role. But take Riesling grapes, for instance, they grow fine in far warmer regions. So as far as grape varieties are concerned, there will be no change for the time being.
But of course, climate change poses new problems and we will have to find new solutions. I just toured the Palatinate wine-growing region, which is grappling with the Esca grape disease. A kind of bacterium attacks the grapevine's trunk, causing the plant to die within a few months. Esca ravages a good part of the vineyard, but scientists don't know why. In the past, the disease was only known in southern Europe, for example in Bordeaux and Sicily. Due to global warming the problem seems to have spread to Germany. Vineyards suffer huge losses and there are no countermeasures yet.
Grape expectations: the world's northernmost wine regions
Are you in the mood for a climate change Chardonnay? How about a mercury-rising Rioja? Wine regions which thus far were ignored are beginning to realize their stock is rising, as global warming is changing viticulture.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Freidberg
Germany: Saxony-Anhalt
German wine is a bit like Marmite: you either love it or hate it. But there's more to than just Moselle Rieslings to savor. In east Germany, there's a whole northern wine region in Saxony-Anhalt, the Weinstrasse Saale-Unstrut, stretching along a 70-kilometer (43-mile) route. Thus far, it is officially considered the northernmost wine route in Europe. But climate change is bound to change that.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/A. Schuler
Germany: Föhr
The North Frisian island of Föhr, which is less than 40 kilometers (25 miles) away from Denmark, has a population of 8,500. Surrounded by the sea breeze in all directions, the local Riesling varietal known as Johanniter thrives in the rough local climate, yielding various white wine products, including a sparkling Brut. What's nicer than to be stuck on an island with an infinite supply of wine?
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Rehder
Belgium
The stellar reputation of Belgian beer is well-known throughout the world. But what about its grapes? The country's wines actually date back all the way to Roman times. Today, the one remaining wine castle in Genoels-Elderen, is proud to continue this age-old tradition, with its Chardonnay giving the French neighbors a run for their money. If you prefer red wine, you can try their Pinot Noir.
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England
The UK is the second-largest Champagne export destination in the world. Brits just love their bubbles in a coupe glass. However, winemakers in England are increasingly perfecting the art of bottling their own sparkles using the same methods used in France's Champagne region. RidgeView Wine Estate in Sussex (seen here) is a UK leader, having won 51 medals and 12 trophies around the globe.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/C. Wiig
Scotland
Scotland's vines are so eager they grow on the walls of the nation's famous castles. Indeed, it's not all about whisky in Scotland, as the Celts are increasingly trying their hand at ciders and wines as well. But is it the next Loire Valley? Critics say that Scottish wines are largely undrinkable, but with climate change continuing on its path this might soon change.
Image: picture-alliance/J. Moreno
Sweden
Sweden's alcohol industry is controlled by a government monopoly, which is not allowed to advertise booze. This is why the country's wines have not really been heard of much even within the country. But with wine tasting being a popular social activity in Sweden, the word is getting out on quality wines from vineyards such as Astad Vingård, about 500 kilometers (310 miles) west of Stockholm.
Image: picture-alliance/Alexander Farnsworth
Norway
Lerkekåsa Vineyard near Norway's Flatdal region prides itself as being the most northerly commercial vineyard in the world. It's located at about the same latitude as Anchorage, Alaska. The biggest grape varietal grown here is the Solaris, which is particularly cold-resistant, but the company is experimenting with about 20 other grapes now — thanks to global warming, of course.
Grapes don't actually grow in Iceland — yet. But one winemaker tried to invent a brew that looked and tasted just like real wine — but the product was apparently a flop. Made from blackberries, blueberries and rhubarb, Kvöldsól was packed with anti-oxidants but sadly had to be discontinued recently. Perhaps in future years with rising temperatures, Iceland might grow real grapes and try again.
Image: Imago/PEMAX
Canada
About a 5-hour drive northeast of Vancouver lies the stunning Okanagan Lake with its wine-growing valley. Wines from this region used to ambitious and somewhat experimental at best. Nowadays, with the effects of global warming playing out, the harvest season is long enough to even grow Merlot and pure-breed Chardonnays. Move over, Napa Valley. This is North America's new grape on the stock.
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Crimea
When Donald Swann and Michael Flanders wrote "Have Some Madeira, M'Dear" in 1959, they most certainly weren't picturing the green pastures of Crimea. The Russian-occupied region has a wine history that dates back to Czar Nicholas II. Benefiting from the mild climate of the Black Sea, Massandra Madeira is said to have been served at the Yalta conference in 1945. Or so we hear through the grapevine.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/M. Mokrushin
Russia
Russia's Belgorod Oblast dates its affinity for wine back to the late Middle Ages, claiming that Turks and Tatars first noted the fact that the region would lend itself to growing grapes. In the 19th century, French settlers arrived to help cultivate grapes bringing their know-how from Bordeaux and Burgundy with them. You can clearly ditch your Russian vodka for wine here.
Image: picture-alliance/N. Gyngazov
Russia: Siberia
In Siberia, which has a reputation for permafrost, there's a long tradition of people harvesting and fermenting grapes. In 2009, a local family decided to take this to the next level, cultivating wine on an industrial scale to produce the first Siberian wine for a mass market. Their two main grapes, Pinot Noir and Muscat, are harvested on an area of eight hectares, producing 50,000 bottles a year.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/Freidberg
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With an eye on environmental protection and ecological cultivation, in how far are fungus-resistant grape varieties an alternative?
You would think fungus-resistant grape varieties are a grand idea. Then you taste the wine and think, no, it's not such a good idea after all. I just don't think it tastes good. These varieties have not been and are not grown in large amounts in Germany.
What are some of the main export markets for German wines?
In China and the US, we've made good headway. Scandinavia is at the forefront — Germany is today the largest supplier of wine in Norway.
Master of Wine Romana Echensperger worked as head sommeliere in various top restaurants in Germany and Spain before setting up her own business in 2011. Today she works as a wine consultant both in Germany and abroad, writes articles about wine for German and Dutch magazines, and holds workshops for the German Wine Institute on the many facets of German wine.