Winegrowers in the Netherlands are expecting 2018 to be an excellent year for wine, with a bumper crop of largely undamaged grapes in spite of the prolonged dry weather, broadcaster NOS reported.

The unusual amount of sunshine this year has had a positive effect, according winegrower Elma Middel, who has two thousand vines on her land to generate income for the upkeep of her earthquake-damaged farm in Groningen.

‘This is really overwhelming and much more than we expected,’ she told broadcaster NOS.

The Dutch association of winegrowers VNWP said it is still early days because the first grape varieties are reaching maturity and are being harvested now.

‘We need the sugar level, acidity and aroma to in balance,’ the association’s spokesman Simon Crone told NOS. ‘Because there has been lots of sunshine the sugar level will not be a problem but acidity declines when it is not cold at night and mineral absorption is affected by dry weather and that affects the scent.’

The VNWP said it will only have an idea of what 2018 will be like at the end of September when most grapes will be harvested.

The Netherlands has 92 commercial vineyards producing 1.2 million bottles of wine each year. Most are situated in the south.

Read more at about Dutch wine here