“Of Course We Can Do It!” How Luxembourg’s Elbling Is Rising Again

An ancient grape variety cultivated since before Roman times, Elbling has always been an integral part of Luxembourg’s gastronomic history. But now, as it faces extinction, a group of young winegrowers has come together to revive the grape and raise it up as a symbol of the value of agroecology.

Luxembourgian wine: A long and unsung history

Little known due to its small scale, Luxembourg’s viticulture thrives on the steep hillside slopes of the western bank of the Moselle. Just 42 kilometers from Schengen (the crossroads of Germany, Luxembourg and France, made famous by the European free-movement agreement of the same name), it stretches all the way to Wasserbillig.

Even less well known is the small addendum represented by the vineyards growing on the southern slopes of the Sûre, a tributary of the Moselle that crosses the north of the country, passing by Rosport and joining the Moselle at Wasserbillig. In total, the whole country has less than 1,300 hectares of vines.

On the opposite bank of the Moselle from Luxembourg lies the German city of Trier, known as the “Rome of the North” and founded by the Romans in 16 BC. The whole Moselle valley was a strategic region for the Western Roman Empire, and the Romans had a great influence on viticulture here, introducing hill terraces and new vinification methods.

Elbling, whose name comes from the Latin albus, meaning “white,” was one of the native varieties already present in the area, as confirmed by Pliny the Elder (23-79 AD): vitis alba, the white vine.

The golden age of Luxembourgian viticulture, which began in the mid-1800s and continued until the outbreak of the First World War, came about thanks to the customs union (Zollverein) which allowed tariff-free trade first with the Kingdom of Prussia and then with the German Empire. The conditions were so favorable that the Grand Duchy even attracted producers from Champagne. It was an age of great prosperity for the Moselle, as can be seen from the beautiful villas from the period that have survived to the present day.

This fortune was built on Elbling: a leafy vine whose grapes produce wines with a good acidity and a low alcohol level. The variety is perfectly suited to making Sekt, or sparkling wine. In fact, during this golden age and for many decades after, 90% of Luxembourg’s vineyards were planted with Elbling.

A vine that fell victim to its own success

The success of the variety ended up becoming its downfall. In the quest for profit, more productive clones were selected, with larger berries and higher yields, and any attention towards creating a quality product was lost. At the same time, to support this excessive production and protect the grape berries’ fragile skin, easily attacked by pathogens, it became common practice to apply huge quantities of plant protection products. As a result, Elbling became synonymous with poor-quality wine and abandoned by consumers. The vines were gradually uprooted and replaced with other varieties. These days, only 4% of Luxembourg’s vineyards are planted with Elbling.

Evolution of the most important varieties between 1966 and 2015 (hectares under vine)

Source: Service Oenologie et contrôle des vins – Ministère de l’Agriculture, de l’Alimentation et de la Viticulture, Luxembourg

A dual challenge

The possibility of saving Elbling is now in the hands of a few young winemakers with a strong ecological ethic, convinced of the value of an organic and biodynamic approach and the principles of the Slow Food Manifesto for Good, Clean and Fair wine. They want not only to preserve this piece of local viticultural history, the biodiversity of the ecosystem and the country’s gastronomic identity, but also to demonstrate the quality that can come from viticulture in harmony with nature.

A good example is the story of Luc, who in 2010 bought an old terraced vineyard with 11 ares of Elbling vines, dating from before 1905. “The old owner told me: you can have them, but you’ll never be able to do organic here, it’ll never work! He even repeated it in front of the notary,” says Luc, laughing. “I replied: OF COURSE I CAN DO IT! When he saw the results, he changed his mind and now he believes that organic is the only acceptable type of cultivation.”

The producers who belong to the Luxembourg Slow Wine Coalition believe in the value of Elbling and also the value of agroecology, a dual challenge in a context where a conventional approach to vine growing is widespread and long-standing, thanks in part to the local climate. Elbling has just been included in the Ark of Taste, the global catalogue created by Slow Food to collect and protect products that belong to the culture, history and traditions of communities around the world. Now, a group of producers wants to establish a Slow Food Presidium, hopefully in collaboration with the IVV, the Institut Viti-Viticole, which conserves many ancient Elbling clones.

A wine both ancient and modern

The Elbling grape accumulates less sugar compared to other varieties like Pinot Grigio and has also maintained a good genetic diversity, promising factors when it comes to the challenges that climate change will bring. The grapes are used to make Elbling wine and Crémant, the local traditional method sparkling wine, both as a single varietal and in blends with other grapes. Modern Elbling from Luxembourg has a clear, luminous straw-yellow color and notes of citrus, melon, gooseberry, green apple and pomegranate on the nose, with characteristic acidity coming through on the palate. The old vines, which have a high genetic potential, make it possible to produce exceptional wines, far from the simple Elblings of the recent past.

Preserving the old clones of the variety will make it possible to return Elbling to its former glory as a wine whose high quality is recognized by connoisseurs. The Luxembourg Slow Wine Coalition says: OF COURSE WE CAN DO IT!