Optimistic start of the grape harvest in Germany

The grapes for the sparkling wine production were already brought in at the end of August in a healthy condition.

Must weights reached quality wine level

The grapes developed very well in the very sunny period from mid-August to early September. The must weights are now at quality wine level everywhere and often already above it. Many Müller-Thurgau and ripe Pinot Gris rapes have already been harvested with good results.

All in all, the differences in ripeness between the individual grape varieties are relatively large this year, depending on the location and viticultural conditions, and are quite heterogeneous between the growing regions. While Pinot varieties, for example, are relatively well developed, especially in the southern regions, Riesling ripeness is mostly still below the level of previous years.

Further increases in ripeness expected

The mixed weather conditions of the last few days with lots of rainfall has slowed down the ripening progress of the grapes somewhat. As a result, the start to the grape harvest was rather subdued compared to the turbocharged harvest of the previous year, as many wineries want to wait for further ripening increases.

If calm autumn weather sets in over the next few weeks, all the conditions are still in place for a very good quality vintage. An alternation of warm days and cool nights would be perfect for the development of flavour in the grapes.

Labour-intensive wine growing season

2024 was a very labour-intensive year for winegrowers. The exceptionally rainy first half of the year placed very high demands on keeping the vines healthy, as this led to high infection pressure from downy and powdery mildew. At the same time, the vines grew very well due to the good water supply, which led to intensive foliage work. However, most vineyards managed to get the situation under control.

In addition, numerous vineyards in some growing regions such as Franken, Württemberg and parts of Baden, the Nahe and the Mosel were damaged by late frost in April. The frost hit the eastern regions of Sachsen and Saale-Unstrut particularly hard. Yield losses of around 70 to 80 per cent are expected in the entire growing regions there.