Details
Main grape harvest coming early in 2017
Grape development two weeks ahead of schedule
Mostly sunny weather in the past few weeks allowed sugar levels to rise rapidly. In some regions grapes have developed two weeks ahead of the long-year average. At present, favorable weather conditions across the wine regions with warm and sunny days followed by cool nights help produce further aroma compounds in the berries.
Since a lot of grape varietals currently reach their optimum maturity at the same time, everything points to a relatively quick harvest this year. Vintners even expect Riesling grapes, which are typically harvested in October, to be ripe for harvesting in mid-September already in some regions. Given dry weather conditions and no threats of disease in the coming weeks, vintners will be optimistic about an exciting vintage with continued high quality.
Due to frost damage in spring, total yields in Germany are expected to be below the long-year average of nine million hectoliters this year.
