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Wines from the Czech Republic

With some Must-Taste Wine Varietals

The Czech Republic, which forms the western half of the ex-Czechoslovakia, is well-known for its beers, but it doesn’t mean that the country doesn’t produce good wines.

As a wine traveller, I found the Czech Republic is having some must-taste wine varietals. The quantity of production is also not minimal.

The Czech wines are being produced in respectable levels. However, as most of the country’s wine production is concentrated towards the southern Moravia, the Czech wines are usually referred to as Moravian Wines.

Wines
Vineyards
Wine grape varieties

Now, let’s see everything about the Czech Republic as a wine country here….

Start and Rise of Czech Wines

The archaeological findings state that the wines have been associated with the Czech Republic right from the Roman Empire.

They also suggest that the varieties like Grüner Veltliner and Welschriesling might have been introduced to the region during the Roman period.

Other archaeological evidence states that viticulture was practiced in the region during the Great Moravian Empire, which was around 833-906. Thus, wines are not new to this country but, there has been a long association.

While the history of viticulture in Czech went on like this, the Phylloxera pest arrived at Moravia during 1902 to devastate most of the vineyards of Moravia. Then, the country re-established its wine industry by planting phylloxera-resistant varieties.

Followed by the re-establishment, the country also enacted the new laws for modern wines during the year 1995. These laws were launched under the Wine Act of 115/1995 for viticulture and winemaking.

Wine Regions of Czech Republic

We can see that the country joined the European Union during the year 2004 followed by, which the wine act number 321/2004 SB for viticulture and winemaking was embraced to make Czech wine appellations conformed to the standards of the EU.

As per the 2004 wine laws, two wine regions can be defined, which are namely, Moravia and Bohemia.

Moravia

As mentioned earlier, most of the country’s wine production is concentrated towards the southern Moravia, especially around the Dyje River.

Although Bohemia is also regarded as the major wine region, almost 96% of country’s vineyards are located in the Moravian region alone.

The region is divided into four sub-regions as:

  • Mikulovská
  • Znojemská
  • Velkopavlovická
  • Slovácká

In total, Moravia has around 19,200 hectares under vineyard cultivation and is producing more than 350,000 hectoliters of wine every year.

Although this region is small when compared to other internationally-famous wine regions, the region is cultivating over 50 types of wine grapes within it. Here, the wine grapes are cultivated in a traditional and an eco-friendly manner.

The wines are being produced using modern-day, controlled fermentation processes, which yield internationally-popular, award-winning wines every year.

The type of wines produced here ranges from traditional red/white varieties to the less-popular rose wines. Besides these, some sparkling and sweet iced wines are also produced.

Bohemia

Relatively, Bohemia has a tiny collection of vineyards, which are among the northernmost ones in Europe.

Located at the latitudes of 50 degrees N, the region has two defined sub-regions, which are namely, Mělnická and Litoměřická.

Apart from these, a few smaller vineyards can be seen in Prague. However, they don’t seem to produce significant amounts of wine.

Vineyards
Breweries
Alcohol and Distilleries

Wine Grapes in the Czech Republic

The key grape varieties of Czech Republic include the aromatic whites like:

  • Traminer Ceverny (Gewurztraminer)
  • Rulandske Sede (Pinot Gris)
  • Ryzlink Rynsky (Riesling)

Besides these, Sauvignon Blanc also seems to be growing well here.

The Gruner Veltliner variety of Austria may arise as the popular Czech wine in the near future.

When it comes to red varieties, although they are not successful here, Dornfelder and Blaufrankisch/Lemberger can be seen here.

Apart from these, a locally-crossed red variety called Cabernet Moravia is also found.

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Author

Tharani Rajamanickam

Tharani Rajamanickam

Winewriter

I am Tharani, I have Bachelors degree in Biotechnology. I am passionate about the wine industry and continue to explore, learn and share and I bring in a wealth of knowledge and expertise to help you keep updated with best wines in the world. Stay tuned..

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