Production of Sauvignon Blanc has nearly tripled in Germany over the past ten years, as warner climates mean that grape varieties that previously thrived further south are now also ripening in Germany, new data from Destatis has found.
The area planted with Sauvignon Blanc vines in Germany rose by 177% in the period from 2011 to 2021, Destatis (the Federal Statistics Office) found, with the variety covering approximately 1,800 hectares, or 1.7% of the total area under cultivation.
'More Hours Of Sunshine'
This is due to 'warmer temperatures and more hours of sunshine', Destatis said in a statement, which in turn is prompting winegrowers to turn to grape varieties that are more associated with southern European cultivation.
Another wine variety on the up is Chardonnay, which saw its production area rise by 84% between 2011 and 2021, to close to 2,600 hectares, while production of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon has also risen.
While certain varieties have seen good growth, the total area under cultivation in Germany only increased slightly (+1%) in the same period, to 103,400 hectares as of last year (up from 102,100 hectares in 2011).
The Rhineland-Palatinate region featured the largest area under vines, boasting around 64,700 hectares – this means that close to two thirds (63%) of all German wine was grown in the southwestern state.
The state that boasts the smallest wine production area is North Rhine-Westphalia, with 20 hectares, while in the city-states of Berlin, Bremen and Hamburg, no wine was cultivated.
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© 2022 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest drinks news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
