2021 Germany & Mosel Riesling Vintage

Across Germany, 2021 brought late frosts in spring, a cool spring that delayed bud break compared with the three previous years and brought later flowering, and a summer with little sunshine and above-average rainfall. Warm, humid summer weather drove an enormous growth spurt in the canopy and raised infection pressure from Oidium and Peronospora, starting a labor-intensive period of plant protection that set organic estates in particular sometimes great, but not insurmountable, challenges. The Mosel had an excess of rain from spring into autumn and a lot of work fighting fungal diseases in a significantly cooler and wetter year. September was the best month for German growers, with plenty of sunshine and cool nights in many regions; its warm weather ripened the fruit and made must weights appealing. The late bud break brought a late harvest, which allowed careful selective picking, especially in VDP Grosse Lage and Erste Lage sites, and dry conditions and lower temperatures gave a relatively long harvest and must weights significantly below the previous year's. The Mosel crop was estimated at 781,000 hectoliters, and VDP estates in the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer saw yields 20 to 30 percent below the long-term average.

• Cool spring: delayed bud break and later flowering than in the three previous years
• Mosel: an excess of rain from spring into autumn and heavy fungal disease work
• September: plenty of sunshine and cool nights in many German regions
• Mosel crop estimated at 781,000 hl; VDP Mosel, Saar and Ruwer yields 20 to 30 percent below the long-term average

The Mosel's prime south-facing vineyards were particularly favored in 2021: some wineries brought in a very good harvest while others faced total loss to fungal diseases. Most producers rated the aroma of the grapes very positively and expected predominantly fruity and refreshing wines. The weather and its challenges were very different for the region's growers, and some Middle Mosel estates were able to harvest every Prädikat up to TBA. In the VDP's harvest review, Dr. Carl von Schubert of Maximin Grünhaus wrote of an abundance of characterful Saar wines to be bottled as Grosses Gewächs, and of excellent Kabinett and Spätlese, while estates on the lower Mosel and the Terrassenmosel were pleased with full-bodied musts with plenty of potential for GGs and higher Prädikat levels. He quoted Clemens Busch of Pünderich: "The musts are shining, it's fun to go to the barrel!"

• Prime south-facing sites particularly favored; some wineries faced total loss to fungal disease
• Middle Mosel: some estates harvested every Prädikat up to TBA
• Saar: an abundance of characterful Grosses Gewächs and excellent Kabinett and Spätlese
• Lower Mosel and Terrassenmosel: full-bodied musts with potential for GGs and higher Prädikat levels

Germany's 2021 harvest was estimated at 8,733,000 hectoliters, three percent above 2020 and only slightly below the ten-year average, with major differences between regions. Peronospora caused partly devastating losses in all 13 German wine regions, organic growers in many regions lost almost half their normal crop, and late frosts in May and hail in late summer caused painful losses in places. The Ahr flood of 15 July devastated more than 40 wineries with mud and water and swept away large areas of vineyard, yet the new vintage ripened relatively unscathed on the Ahr's steep slopes and terraces, for an estimated 35,000 hectoliters. In the VDP's harvest review, Meike Näkel of Meyer-Näkel said: "The 2021 vintage is the most dramatic and emotional we have ever had."

• Germany: an estimated 8,733,000 hl, three percent above 2020
• Peronospora caused losses in all 13 German wine regions
• Ahr: flood on 15 July; more than 40 wineries devastated; an estimated 35,000 hl harvested

In results published in August 2022, a jury of 35 wine professionals invited by the Moselwein e.V. assessed 525 Mosel wines over two days. Ansgar Schmitz, managing director of the Mosel-Weinwerbung, said most of the experts would not have expected such fruity, clean and fresh wines after this difficult vintage, and that thanks to meticulous handwork, selective picking and good cellar work the producers had bottled high quality; he called 2021 a classic Mosel vintage with good aging potential. VDP members in the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer all reported animating, fresh acidity that will give the wines great longevity. German Wines USA summed up 2021 across Germany's 13 wine regions as lean wines, full of aroma, with less alcohol than in previous years but no less aroma.

• Moselwein e.V. jury: fruity, clean and fresh wines that most experts had not expected
• Ansgar Schmitz of the Mosel-Weinwerbung: a classic Mosel vintage with good aging potential
• VDP members in the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer: animating, fresh acidity
• German Wines USA, Germany-wide: lean wines, full of aroma, with less alcohol than previous years