East Frisian wine on the way

aurich/berlin - Nearly one hundred enthusiasts from the East Frisia region of Friesland have set up a cooperative on Friday to set up vineyards and make wine in the northern region. The 99 participants officially founded the First East Frisian Wine Farmers' Cooperative.

This is the first step on the way to vineyards north of Leer, just across the Dutch border at Nieuweschans in Groningen. The intention is to make high quality wine, and the brand new cooperative has chosen the grape variety Solaris.

The species was developed in a wine-growing institute in southern Germany and is also used in Dutch viticulture. A driving force behind East Frisian viticulture is Torsten Oltmanns. He has said that an experienced wine farmer from the southern Hesse was bound for the East Frisian challenge.

The cooperative hopes for a first harvest of 8000 bottles of white wine. It will not be the first Frisian wines. For example, in the Dutch province of Friesland are vineyards.