“Limburg could become the future champagne region of Europe”
After more than two centuries without vineyards in Limburg, Jean Bellefroid proved that wine could be made in this Belgian region. Now Borgloon, one of the key sites in this story, is facing the next challenge: sustainable winegrowing.
Once upon a time there was a wine fanatic who wanted to know whether wine growing was possible in the Belgian Limburg province. He was Jean Bellefroid, the pioneer of modern wine growing in Belgium. His first vineyards were planted at Borgloon in 1963 and since then, viticulture has become a wine stain spread across Haspengouw, Hageland or the Meuse Valley. But how has this tradition continued and where is the future of Limburg wines headed?
Limburg is the easternmost province of Flanders and it is known for its production of white wines made from the Müller-Thurgau grape variety. Jean Bellefroid used Müller-Thurgau for making white wine and a local grape called Vroege Loonse for the red one. “My father discovered the Vroege Loonse variety in the early 60s, it is a clone of Pinot Noir that ripens a few weeks before Pinot”, remarks Dirk Bellefroid, son of the pioneer who had an insurance agency but his great hobby was enjoying a glass of wine.
The taste of Vroege Loonse, which its name is translated as “Early of Loon” (Loon refers to Borgloon village), was described by the wine journalist George Meekers as a “lovely coral-red wine that is hard to place”. Meekers also added: “Although likable and friendly, it is one of those wines that is likely to startle a befuddled sigh by the uninitiated drinker”. However, it is no longer cultivated due to its lack of quality. Only a few wineries grow Vroege Loonse, such as Optimbulles, Het Heuvelswijnhuisje and Domein Cohlenberg, the one runned by Bellefroid’s son-in-law Ludo Derwael, where it all started 60 years ago.
Viticulture was already very popular in the region of Haspengouw in the Middle Ages. After analyzing the climate and the sensitivity of vegetation and founding administrative records about existing vineyards in Borgloon in the Middle Ages, Jean Bellefroid travelled to wine regions in Germany in order to learn the knowhow from wine growers like Joseph Kohlhaas. “His goal was showing that it was possible to make wine in the cold climate from Limburg”, points out Ludo Derwael. Indeed, Bellefroid was right. Following his steps, in 2021 there were a total of 237 registered winegrowers in the whole country, amateurs and (semi-)professional producers combined. Together, they own 695 hectares of vineyards, according to the data of Flanders Agricultural Department.
The Limburg terroir is extremely suitable for making wine because of the rolling landscape and good subsoil. “The differentiation in terroir, from sand to loam, and from gravel to marl, makes this an excellent region”, explain Fabio and Laura Celli from Montepertini Wijndomein. Moreover, it is warmer in this province than in the rest of the country. “Its humidity and its sun orientation is the best in Belgium”, adds Ludo Derwael. These are two important explanations for the top quality reputation of Limburg wines. In fact, from the eight Protected Designations of Origin (PDOs) of Belgium, two of them are from Limburg: Haspengouwse wijn and Maasvallei Limburg.
Sparkling wines account for about “45 percent of the total production” of wines in Belgium. “In the future we will be the champagne region of Europe”, states Bellefroid’s son-in-law. The wine expert and academic researcher from PXL, Nele Bylois, explains that Belgium mainly wine production is specialised in sparkling white wine because of the cold weather. “That’s why in Limburg, particularly in the region of Haspengouw, before the entry of the Romains, there was a strong focus because of climate, soil and knowledge about small fruits like raspberries or blueberries, which need less sunlight”, remarks the wine expert. It was the Romains that made Belgians aware of another berry: the grape. And grape varieties used for sparkling white wine also need less sunlight and less sugar.
But then the climate change started to show its effects and the young country of wine increased its production. Brussels Times’ newspaper published the following headline: “Never has Belgian wine production been as high as in 2022”. The largest increase in production last year “was seen with red wine, which rose by 200% to almost 371,000 litres”, explained the newspaper. “With higher temperatures, better quality wines. Moreover, now it’s too hot in Spain and France so their grapes have too much sugar, they get heavy wines”, adds Nele Bylois. It means that the changing climate has had a positive influence for Belgian wine growers for the time being. This has ensured that they can make not only sparkling but also still wines of an increasingly higher level. “For example, one trend is that more and more wine growers are opting for grape varieties with a longer cycle such as Merlot and Sauvignon”, clarifies Fabio Celli.
However, these benefits won’t last forever. “If we don’t take it seriously, in 15 or 20 years we will end like Bordeaux, uprooting vines because of devastating hailstorms, frost and droughts caused by climate change”, warns Nele Bylois. That’s why as a researcher, Bylois investigates and promotes sustainable and durable wine growing. She is working now on sensitizing growers with how to evolve environmentally sound techniques, which is a goal framed on the EMRWINE project, supported by the Interreg VA Euregio Meuse-Rhine programme. This project enables smart growth through innovation in agricultural practices and sustainable growth through the application of local and organic viticulture (changing the production methods to eliminate the use of pesticides).
In fact, nowadays, in front of the group of traditional grape varieties has appeared the classification of resistant species (also known as PIWI grape varieties), which imply a great reduction in the use of pesticides or chemicals. This has generated a debate in the wine sector. Which one should be produced? Nele Bylois explains that although resistant species need less human interference, they have the disadvantage that they are “less known to the consumer”. Therefore, the trend among producers is towards traditional varieties such as Pinot noir or Chardonnay.
Nevertheless, we find exceptions like Jerom Winery and Domaine Hoenshof, which won the International PIWI Wine Award. Jeroen Houben is the founder of Jerom Winery. He learned at his father’s side and today they run Domaine Hoenshof together. On the one hand, Jerom Winery is proof that sustainable Belgian wine production is both possible and profitable. They use grapes grown by fruit farmers from Haspengouw to produce sustainable, high-quality wine that is low in residues and, over time, will even become residue-free. Fruit growers of Haspengouw, who are living a diversification process by planting vineyards because of the changing climate, exchange grapes for a fair price per kilogram. Moreover, he has a pilot project in Corda Campus, together with Hasselt University, where a high-tech vineyard consisting of 340 Souvignier gris vines are planted on the roof of the Corda Bar.
On the other hand, Jeroen Houben is an example of the new generations that are taking over agricultural professions. In fact, according to Brussels Time, Limburg has the “largest number” of new wine growers. This situation connects back to the EMRWINE project, which also aims for inclusive growth through the promotion of agricultural professions among young people. Nowadays, there is a wine training course in CVO-Step (Hasselt Hotel School) and a sommelier one in Syntra PXL. “There are more teacher candidates than places”, points out Dirk Bellefroid, smiling because of the great tradition of viticulture that has grown up in Limburg.
Therefore, Belgium’s small wine industry is growing rapidly. And it is gradually growing in a sustainable manner. One of the initiatives to raise public awareness of the quality and craftsmanship of Belgian winemakers is wine tourism. Montepertini Wijndomein noticed that enotourism is booming: “Various experiences are offered in combination with wine tastings, such as regional product tours, wine experience walks… We also organize dinners in the vineyard in the summer and these are always very successful”. Moreover, Nele Bylois attributes this to “people’s awareness of the artesanal-intense winemaking process”.
In fact, wine tourism allows local producers to build a brand and assure to sell out their wines. Bylois goes to the next step: sustainable wine tourism like the project of Brut Terroir, in which they organize wine tours around the region of Haspengouw by bicycle, scooter, e-cart or on foot. So then, the future of Limburg wines is green as long as there is an awareness of its unique terroir, healthy grapes, hard work, the will to innovate and passion.
