This year, 10 percent more new wine was produced in Hungary than last year

From the grapes harvested this year, approximately 2.9–3 million hectoliters of new wine with lees were produced, which is 10 percent higher than last year’s level and roughly corresponds to the average of the past ten years, according to an overview prepared by the National Chamber of Agriculture (NAK) and the National Council of Wine Communities.

In their statement sent to MTI on Tuesday, they said that the harvest was completed without any problems. Thanks to the dry summer weather, the crop was healthy and of exceptionally good quality, with a total volume of around 410,000–430,000 tons.

They highlighted that grapevine golden yellows has so far not affected yields; in the wine regions most affected, no crop losses are visible compared to previous years.

The vines detected as diseased this year still produced fruit in this harvest, but they will no longer do so next year. The epidemic-like spread and accelerated rate of infection have created a crisis situation, and next year vines will have to be cut out in most of the affected areas.

The time required for newly replanted vineyards to become productive is primarily influenced by the amount of rainfall. In consecutive drought years, grapevines develop slowly, and even with continuous vine replacement, it may take as long as 6–7 years for new plantings to come into production.

This means that crop losses are inevitable in wine regions where phytoplasma infection is more significant, they wrote.

They also explained that Hungarian wine is an excellent choice as a Christmas gift. In recent years, light, fresh, fruity wines and sparkling products have become more popular on the Hungarian market, while among young people the consumption of reduced-alcohol products has increased. At Christmas, more expensive and more special wines come to the fore.

Although the end of the year primarily increases demand for sparkling wines, wine sales in general also rise during this period, they added.