Saxony (''Sachsen'') is a region for quality
wine in Germany located in the
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
federal state of
Saxony
Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...
. The region is sometimes referred to
colloquially
Colloquialism (), also called colloquial language, everyday language or general parlance, is the style (sociolinguistics), linguistic style used for casual (informal) communication. It is the most common functional style of speech, the idiom norm ...
as ''the Elbtal'' (Elbe valley). The wine region covers ,
[German Wine Institute: German wine statistics 2009/2010](_blank)
which makes it Germany's third smallest region, just ahead of
Mittelrhein and
Hessische Bergstraße
The Hessische Bergstraße ("Hessian Mountain Road") is a defined region (''Anbaugebiet'') for wine in Germany located in the state of Hesse among the northern and western slopes of the Odenwald mountain chain. With only of vineyards it is the ...
in size. It is situated along the
Elbe
The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Repu ...
river from the
Pillnitz
Pillnitz is a quarter in the east of Dresden, Germany. It can be reached by bus, ship, walking along the river or by bicycle. Pillnitz is most famous for its Baroque palace and park, the Pillnitz Castle.
Pillnitz Palace consists of the Riversid ...
section of
Dresden
Dresden (, ; Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; wen, label=Upper Sorbian, Drježdźany) is the capital city of the German state of Saxony and its second most populous city, after Leipzig. It is the 12th most populous city of Germany, the fourth larg ...
to the village of
Diesbar-Seußlitz located north of
Meissen
Meissen (in German orthography: ''Meißen'', ) is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, the Albrecht ...
.
[Wein.de (German Agricultural Society): Saxony](_blank)
/ref> Together with the Saale-Unstrut
Saale-Unstrut is a region (''Anbaugebiet'') for quality wine in Germany,[Wein.de (Germa ...](_blank)
wine region, Saxony is one of the northernmost wine regions in Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
and are the only two of Germany's 13 wine regions that are located in the former East Germany
East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...
.[ J. Robinson (ed) ''"The Oxford Companion to Wine"'' Third Edition pg 599 Oxford University Press 2006 ] After German reunification
German reunification (german: link=no, Deutsche Wiedervereinigung) was the process of re-establishing Germany as a united and fully sovereign state, which took place between 2 May 1989 and 15 March 1991. The day of 3 October 1990 when the Ge ...
in 1990, the vineyard surface was expanded from 200 to 450 hectares with European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
subsidies, but in recent years the vineyard area has decreased.
History
The area of Saxony has a long winemaking tradition with evidence of viticulture
Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...
in the region dating as far back as 1161 in Meissen.
Climate and geography
Located in southeastern Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
near the border with the Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
, the region has a continental climate
Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in the middle latitudes (40 to 55 north), within large landmasses where prevailing winds blow overland bringing som ...
that is tempered somewhat by the Elbe. The granite
Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...
and gneiss
Gneiss ( ) is a common and widely distributed type of metamorphic rock. It is formed by high-temperature and high-pressure metamorphic processes acting on formations composed of igneous or sedimentary rocks. Gneiss forms at higher temperatures an ...
based soil
Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former te ...
s of the area are similar to the Austria
Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
n Wachau wine
Wachau is one of Austria's most established and notable wine regions, specializing in dry wines made from Riesling and Grüner Veltliner. Located in Lower Austria along the Danube, west of Vienna and Krems an der Donau, it is one of the westernm ...
region.
Grapes and wine
The Müller-Thurgau
Müller-Thurgau is a white grape variety (sp. ''Vitis vinifera'') which was created by Hermann Müller from the Swiss Canton of Thurgau in 1882 at the Geisenheim Grape Breeding Institute in Germany. It is a crossing of Riesling with Madeleine R ...
grape is the leading planting of the area at and 18.4% (2008 figures) followed by Riesling
Riesling (, ; ) is a white grape variety that originated in the Rhine region. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and sparkling wh ...
at 14.5% and Weissburgunder
Pinot blanc is a white wine grape. It is a point genetic mutation of Pinot noir. Pinot noir is genetically unstable and will occasionally experience a point mutation in which a vine bears all black fruit except for one cane which produces white ...
(Pinot blanc) at 11.9%. The majority of the wine production, around 90%, is in dry wine
The subjective sweetness of a wine is determined by the interaction of several factors, including the amount of sugar in the wine, but also the relative levels of alcohol, acids, and tannins. Sugars and alcohol enhance a wine's sweetness, wh ...
.
The most cultivated grape varieties, by area in 2008, were:
Impressions
File:Wine shop out of season.jpg, Wine shop out of season
File:Young vines.jpg, Young vines
File:Green house in a vineyard.jpg, Old green house now used to serve wine
File:Entry to a winery.jpg, Entry to a winery
File:Figure on winery building.jpg, Figure on a winery building
File:Detail of an old building.jpg, Detail of an old building
File:Landscape with vines.jpg, Landscape with vines
File:Landscape with winery.jpg, Landscape with winery
File:Saxon wine hiking trail.jpg, Saxon wine hiking trail
File:Small wine vault.jpg, Small wine vault
File:Vines in spring.jpg, Vines in spring
File:Vineyard with stately estate.jpg, Vineyard with stately estate
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saxony (wine region)
Geography of Saxony
Wine regions of Germany