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The Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter (VDP) has published its annual report for 2023. The economic data of the 200 member wineries are surveyed for this purpose. In total, all VDP members sold 39.7 million 0.75-litre bottles in the previous year. The average price for VDP estate wines is €11.50 per bottle, €14 for local wines, €20 for "Erste Lagen" and around €40 for Groß Lage wines. The average price for a bottle of wine from Germany in the same period was 3.83 euros.
Most wineries were able to maintain their sales, although around half of the wineries reported declining sales. In total, the VDP generated sales of around 460 million euros (after 444 million euros in 2022). This equates to €2.3 million per winery (2022: €2.24 million).
Sales in Germany were maintained at 73 per cent of turnover, bucking the general trend, which saw a decline of nine per cent for German wines. 26 per cent of VDP wines were sold in the German specialist trade and 20 per cent directly to the catering trade. As the catering trade is increasingly reluctant to finance large wine stocks, one in four companies in the VDP expects sales via the specialist trade to increase. Sales in the food retail trade (LEH) fell by 3.5 per cent to 5.5 per cent. Only 15 per cent of wineries were able to increase their sales there, and one in four wineries sold less via the food retail trade. Sales via external online retailers halved to five per cent. Nevertheless, almost two thirds of VDP wineries work with such retailers, even though many expect further declines in online sales.
86 per cent of VDP wineries have their own online shop, through which they sell 14 per cent of their wines. Almost every second winery (43%) was able to increase sales there, while only one in five had to accept a decline in sales. Farm-gate sales remain important for many wineries. On average, almost 30 per cent of wines are sold directly to customers, with figures ranging from zero to 70 per cent.
Every fourth bottle (27 per cent) of VDP wine is exported. Here, 41 per cent of the wineries were able to increase their sales abroad, while 26 per cent were affected by a decline in exports. The most important markets are Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, the USA, China, Japan, Switzerland, Belgium and the UK. Australia, Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Mexico and Brazil were named as future markets.
82 VDP members work according to organic guidelines. They cultivate 40 per cent of the total 5,500 hectares of VDP vineyards, which is 16 per cent of the German organic wine-growing area. 427 hectares or 7.7 per cent are cultivated biodynamically by 13 wineries. 65 wineries with almost 2,500 hectares or 45 per cent of the VDP vineyard area are certified as sustainably managed.
(al / Source: VDP)