Viticulture in Poland has a long history and dates back to at least the 12th century AD. With the increasing Christianization of the country, monasteries and abbeys in particular promoted viticulture, especially for liturgical purposes. It is mentioned in documents around 1250 that Cistercian monks from the Paradies monastery planted the first vineyards. In the period that followed, the vineyard area grew to up to 4,000 hectares. The so-called “Little Ice Age”, which began in the 15th century and until the 19th century, caused a first setback in development. A further complication in this context was the fact that wine imports were simply cheaper. After the Second World War, viticulture practically came to a standstill. It was only in the 90s of the last century that new approaches emerged. Poland today has a vineyard area of almost 1,000 hectares. Two thirds of the vineyards are in the west of Poland near Zielona Gora, the rest is spread over vineyards near the national metropolis of Warsaw and in the Pre-Carpathian region in the southeast of the country. Overall, the vineyards are among the northernmost in Europe. In the cool climate characterized by numerous rain and hail showers, in addition to typical cool climate varieties such as Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, fungus and rot-resistant Piwi varieties such as Seyval Blanc, Siegerrebe, Sibera, Regent and Ortega thrive particularly well. Overall, the climatic conditions are similar to those of Champagne and could even benefit from climate change, so it's no wonder that the first German sparkling wine using the champagne method celebrated its premiere near Grünberg in the Zielona Góra region at the beginning of the 19th century. Climate change may be one of the reasons why scientists predict Poland will have a good future in viticulture. The production structure today is determined by many small and very small winegrowers; many of these around 400 winegrowers also operate in mixed businesses, for example fruit growing. When Poland joined the EU in 2004, it was recognized by the EU as a wine-growing country. Polish cuisine shows influences from both western and eastern neighboring countries, but is most likely to be rustic. Typical dishes include Barszcz, a beetroot soup that has become famous under the name Borscht, the cabbage rolls called “Täubchen” or the sauerkraut stew Bigos. The sea and the lakes of Masuria also provide fish, and of course the most famous dish in the country should not be forgotten, the pierogi, the legendary filled dumplings.
