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Saale-Unstrut Wine Region

 

Saale-Unstrut
Vintage Ratings
 
The following ratings are only a general guideline. Individual wines can certainly be better or worse than these ratings. Also, a wine ready to be enjoyed from a "bad" year can be better than a wine that is still too young from a "good" year.
 
1990  -
1991  -
1992  -
1993  -
1994  -
1995  -
1996  -
1997  -
1998  -
1999  -
2000  -
2001  -
2002  -
2003  -
2004  -
   
= Fair Vintage
= Decent Vintage
= Good Vintage
= Excellent Vintage
 
(Ratings from www.wein.de)
 
 
Location
The Saale-Unstrut wine region is located primarily in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt (Sachsen-Anhalt), with a little portion stretching over into the state of Thuringia (Thüringen). The region runs along the Saale and Unstrut rivers and is Germany's most northern wine region.
 
 
Size
Germany's fifth smallest wine region.
1,606 acres (650 hectares)
 
1.2 million gallons (46,000 hectoliters) of wine are produced annually in the Saale-Unstrut region (27.3% Prädikatswein; 72.5% Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete). This accounts for only 0.5% of the volume from Germany's entire wine region.

 
 
Climate & Geography
The soil in this region is consists of limescale, slate, and sandstone, which help produce hearty wines. The region gets a great amount of sunshine and little rain, making it one of Germany's driest wine regions. It also experiences harsh winters. Because of this, mainly early ripening grapes are cultivated in this region.
 
Grape Varieties
78% white and 22% red grape varieties are planted in the Saale-Unstrut region. The dominant grapes are the Müller-Thurgau and Weissburgunder. Other important grapes are listed below.
       
  Müller-Thurgau White 22.6%
  Weissburgunder White 11.7%
  Silvaner White 8.9%
  Kerner White 7.2%
  Portugieser Red 7.2%
  Riesling White 6.1%
  Dornfelder Red 4.6%
  Gewürztraminer White 4.5%
  Grauburgunder White 3.8%
  Gutedel White 3.7%
  Spätburgunder Red 3.7%
  (Statistics from www.wein-plus.de)
 
 
Characteristics of Saale-Unstrut Wine
The Saale-Unstrut region's northern location helps to produce especially fragrant, elegant, and spicy wines. Typical for the region are dry wines with a fine fruitiness.
 
 
History
Wine production in the Saale-Unstrut region dates back to the year 998. In the Middle Ages, this region was a significant wine producing region. However, due to adverse weather conditions and the 30-Year War, the area dedicated to vineyards shrinked dramatically. Today, the region is only 1,606 acres (650 hectares).
   
(Source of Photos: wein-plus.de)
 
 
 
 
 
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