Styrian winegrowers

Wine harvest: Will 2024 be a “vintage of the century”?

The grape harvest started earlier than ever in Styria this year.(Bild: Sepp Pail)

The Styrian grape harvest this year was smaller in terms of quantity than in previous years. In terms of quality, however, winegrowers and wine experts are highly optimistic: the sunny and warm summer could bring Styria a "vintage of the century".

Quality instead of quantity - this is how this year's Styrian wine harvest can be summed up. According to estimates by Statistics Austria, the volume is likely to amount to 210,000 hectoliters - around 20 percent less than in previous years.

Exceptional quality
"The frost events in spring and the partially rainy blossom have resulted in far lower yields than expected," says Georg Regele, Chairman of the Styrian wine trade. However, there is some good news: thanks to many hours of sunshine and the high temperatures in summer, Styrian winegrowers are reporting exceptionally high grape qualities. Regele is already talking about a "vintage of the century".

The extremely early start to the harvest this year, which began as early as September 1, was also unusual. The mostly dry weather provided perfect conditions.

Wine lovers can see the advertised quality - "pronounced fruit and fullness" - for themselves with the Junker sales launch on October 25.