Lower grape harvest and more expensive wine this year

Lower grape harvest this year and more expensive wine. This is reported by owners of vineyards in Plovdiv region, Southern Bulgaria.

Due to an exceptionally dry year, the yield of table grapes has decreased by about 30%. The increased cost of supplies for cultivating the grapes is also expected to drive up the price of wine.

Ivan Gyurov, who grows 70 decares of table grapes in the village of Brestovitsa near Plovdiv, describes the year as extremely bad due to the lack of rain, with very low yields.

"It has been a very dry year. We're already on the verge of winter, and the last rain in the area was only 200 ml per square metre, which is nothing for farmers."

Rapid climate change, alternating unseasonably warm winters and cold springs, has had the biggest impact on the harvest, say vineyard owners in the area.

"It's been a long time since people remember such a poor harvest. With some of the varieties, the low yield was combined with poor grape quality," Gyurov explained.

Bulgaria has 22,000 decares of table grapes, two-thirds of which are located in Brestovitsa. Many wineries are also situated around Plovdiv. Their owners note that, due to the dry year and the rising costs of supplies, the price of wine for the end consumer will also increase.

"Everything is getting more expensive. Wine won't be an exception. Labour costs are rising, and so are the costs of chemicals. When we have a lower yield, the maintenance costs of the vineyard are naturally higher. So, it's only logical that the price of wine will go up as well," said Nikolay Kyuchukov, owner of a winery.

The wine industry says many people are giving up growing grapes and vineyards are being sold off en masse.