A charming surprise.

Selection, plenty of pickers, a fast harvest and good vineyard management were the keys to unlocking the potential of the 2014 vintage in Germany. The season started extremely well with many regions experiencing summer like conditions in the spring. For Andreas Spreitzer this precipitated the earliest flowering he’d ever seen, while Thomas Haag of Schloss Lieser described flowering as “perfect”. Fruit set across the regions was large and for the most part, even. By mid-June records were hinting at one of the warmest vintages on record. Many vines were even at in danger of experiencing drought stress. 

This was all set to change as July and August proved to be unsettling for almost everyone, with large periods of rainfall and uneven weather delaying progress in the vineyards. Then September arrived and brought with it not just more rain but also some rather unwelcome humidity. Indeed, vines heavy with swelling bunches offer ample opportunity for the development of botrytis, and when warm weather is added into the equation the recipe is one that puts growers on edge.