Winemaking in Germany - statistics & facts
Looking for a nice Riesling wine? This white wine grape is perhaps one of the best-known among the varieties used in German winemaking. Germany boasts a number of well-known winemaking regions, with businesses contributing significantly to local tourism and consumer spending. In fact, while there is plenty to see besides vineyards, many tourists visit mainly for the purpose of sampling German wine, with vineyards themselves often providing tastings and tours. Rhenish Hesse (Rheinhessen), with the Rhine river flowing through it, had the largest cultivated area under vines in the country at almost 27,500 hectares. Palatinate and Baden rounded up the three leading regions in terms of hectarage.
The future of winemaking in Germany depends on several factors, among them the shortage of skilled workers, which directly affects the growing and harvesting of wine grapes. Climate change and subsequent challenging weather also affect vineyards, as well as agriculture in general.
White and red
Germany is particularly known for its white wines, and this is clearly confirmed by area under vines for white wine grapes noticeably exceeding red wine grape acreage, at almost 69 percent compared to around 31 percent. However, white wine grape cultivation area had somewhat decreased after 2000. Besides the aforementioned Riesling, Germany also grows several other well-known white wine grape varieties, such as pinot grigio, also known as pinot gris, and pinot blanc or pinot bianco. Red wine grapes used in German winemaking include pinot noir or pinot nero, Dornfelder and Blauer Portugieser (which is actually not of Portuguese origin).Message in a bottle
German wine is in demand in other countries, with an active foreign trade in Europe. Leading export markets for wine and wine must from Germany included the Netherlands, Poland and Belgium. Since the self-sufficiency rate for wine is far below 100 percent, by definition this means that Germany relies on imports to cover consumer demand. The leading countries importing wine to Germany were Italy, Spain and France, all historically important and famous winemakers in their own right.The future of winemaking in Germany depends on several factors, among them the shortage of skilled workers, which directly affects the growing and harvesting of wine grapes. Climate change and subsequent challenging weather also affect vineyards, as well as agriculture in general.
