Is Germany becoming a Red Wine Country?

In 2021, according to the Bundesinformationszentrum Landwirtschaft, red grapes accounted for about 33.000 hectares of the German vineyard area of a bit more than 100.000 hectares. 

40 years earlier, the vineyards planted with red grapes accounted for about 1/3 of that size, i.e. 11.000 hectares.

Within the period of 40 years, the red wine produced by Germany has grown dramatically, increasing by 300 percent overall, or on average about 8 percent per year. 

With this trend continuing, Germany would soon be a predminantly red wine producing country. 

However, the last 5 years have seen a reversal of this trend and red wine production has declined in Germany.

Currently, in terms of hectares, 68 percent of German wine production is white and 32 percent is red, down from 37 percent in 2006. 

Still, Germany has become a serious red wine producer, due to a number of reasons, including climate change, within a time span of 40 years.

Steffen Schindler of the Deutsches Weininstitut argues that the reason for the decrease in red wine production in the last couple of years is demand-driven: People drink more and more white wine because it suits many trends in modern cuisine better: nordic, asian, vegetarian, vegan, more poultry, fish, salads, vegetables.  

Steffen Schindler: "The German Dream Team Riesling & Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir) are now the two most widely planted varieties in Germany. This is due to the fact that Spätburgunder has been very stable over the past years, while Müller-Thurgau lost a lot of surface and has finally dropped to third place in 2021. Needless to say that Riesling is by far the most widely planted variety, and still growing slightly! The other big winner in recent years has been Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris/Grigio) to the effect that in 2021 it has climbed to forth place, pushing Dornfelder back to number 5. PINOT PARADISE GERMANY: Taken together, the various pinot varieties now cover 29.8 % of all vineyards in Germany!

See also: Germany - Trend Towards Becoming a Red Wine Country Stopped? 

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