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Vintage Reports |
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| November 17th 2006 |
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| Germany: All or nothing |
by Dr. Herman Pilz and Richard Grosche
In July it looked as if it would be a magnificent year for German winemakers. Sufficient rains during the winter, a slightly delayed blossom and then the hottest July ever recorded had set the stage for great expectations. Then, temperatures dropped and August rains gorged the grapes. |
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Nonetheless, until early September, everything was still in reasonably good condition except for small pockets where hail had destroyed the vines. The most dramatic changes came late in the season as winemakers were preparing their cellars for the vintage: heavy rains and warm temperatures suddenly confronted almost all regions with fast spreading mould. Some winemakers waited for better conditions; others, fearing the worst, brought in what they could. What followed was one of the fastest harvests ever – and one of the smallest, at least for those winemakers who selected carefully. They were rewarded with excellent musts, but at the price of extremely low yields. The total crop is estimated at slightly above 9 million hectolitres, which is slightly below last year´s harvest and five percent below the long term average, but more than ten percent below the predictions made in early September. Baden and Württemberg were the hardest hit.
The finest wines, both red and white, should be very good, with the northern parts of the country – Mosel, Nahe and Rheingau – faring better than their southern colleagues. In particular, the Mittelrhein was unaffected by the adverse conditions. Crops levels there were up by half compared to last year and some estates are already speaking of an exceptional vintage. Physiological ripeness paired with high acidity will guarantee some excellent bottles. For the basic segment, however, which will be fraught with problems, demand may well exceed supply. The sector most heavily affected by this freak of nature will be the mid-price wines, which at many estates were not produced. It was an all or nothing vintage. |
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