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Belgian wine is produced in several parts ofBelgium and production, although still modest at 1,400hectoliters in 2004,[1] has expanded in recent decades.[2][3]
Belgian wine first appeared in theMiddle Ages, around the 9th century. It is unlikely thatwine was made in the area now known asBelgium before that, since the climate was not suitable andGaul was covered with thick forests. However, there are mentions of Paris vineyards in the 4th century. From that time,vine cultivation spread northward and in the 8th century the banks of theRhine were covered with vineyards. The first attempts atviniculture in Belgium were made around the same time. Moreover, the vineyards were already well established inAmay. The vineyard atVivegnis, in the north of the province ofLiège, was already considered old in the 9th century, as well as the vineyard atHuy, which belonged in part to the Bishop of Liège. The edges of theMeuse River were intensively cultivated because they offered well-exposed hillsides.
In the 14th century, each city had its own vineyard, whether within or outside the city walls. The cities ofTournai,Louvain,Brussels,Bruges,Ghent,Thuin,Hal,Dinant,Namur,Tongres, andHuy, among others, have left signs of their vinicultural activities in the form of local place names such as Wijnberg,mount of vines, Wijngaard, Dutchvineyard, Vivegnis and Vinalmont.
The first to cultivate vines in the region were monks, who needed a clean, safe beverage for their celebrations, one that would risk contaminating neither the citizens nor the rainwatercatchment; the vine responded to their efforts, and so the first vineyards were the property ofabbeys. Some of the more organized abbeys even owned vineyards outside of their districts. Wine grapes were also cultivated by individuals, as well as byseigneurs such as theDukes of Burgundy, who owned the vineyards atBrussels,Louvain,Aarschot,Namur andMons.
Climatic conditions in the 15th century presented difficulties for viniculture, with the onset of theLittle Ice Age. Some vineyards in favorablemicroclimates survived until the 17th century.
During this same era, techniques of beer production advanced and, owing to the addition ofhops, storage life was prolonged. Beer gained in popularity, and eventually supplanted wine as the most common bacteriologically safe beverage.
The expansion of the Belgian winegrowing area in the late 20th and early 21st century is part of a larger trend of increase in cold-climate winemaking. In many cases, new vineyards have been created in areas previously known fororchards.
Wine production occurs in bothWallonia andFlanders. As French is one of Belgium's official languages, the official terms used for Belgian wine regions are the same as those forFrench wine. Belgium has five officially demarcatedAppellations d'origine contrôlées (AOCs), four inFlanders and one inWallonia, and twoVin de pays regions.[1][4]Hageland, situated inFlemish Brabant close toLeuven, was the first AOC was created, in 1997. AOC Haspengouw (Hesbaye) followed in 2000, located inLimburg, close to the border withNetherlands, and home to Belgium's most famous "château" and largest wine producer,Wijnkasteel Genoels-Elderen.[5] AOCHeuvelland followed in 2005.[6] In Dutch, these three Flemish AOCs are written asHagelandse wijn,Haspengouwse wijn andHeuvellandse wijn, respectively, and the official term corresponding to the French term AOC isGecontroleerde oorsprongsbenaming. There is also an AOC for quality sparkling wine from Flanders,Vlaamse mousserende kwaliteitswijn, created in 2005.[4][7]
The first Wallonian AOC, Côtes de Sambre et Meuse, was created in 2004, and is situated between the riversSambre andMeuse, in the vicinity ofLiège.
The twoVin de Pays (country wine) regions cover Flanders and Wallonia, respectively. The Flemish country wine is simply designatedVlaamse landwijn, while the Wallonian country wine carries the slightly more fanciful nameVin de pays des Jardins de Wallonie.[8]
Wines of different styles are produced, but around 90 percent of the production is white wines.[1] Those that receive the most attention are white wines produced fromChardonnay grapes, produced in a style somewhat reminiscent of a whiteBurgundy wine. While both unoaked ("Chablis-style") andoaked ("Côte de Beaune-style") Chardonnay wines are produced, the oaked examples have been more successful with wine critics.
For AOC Hageland, the following grape varieties are authorised:[9]
For AOC Côtes de Sambre et Meuse, the following grape varieties are authorised:[10]
For Flemish sparkling wine:[7]
Other grapes grown in Belgium include:Muscat bleu,[11]Solaris.[12]
The country counts few wine competitions. But only theInternational Wine Contest ofMonde Selection received the patronage of theO.I.V.
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