LANSING, Mich. – The Michigan Craft Beverage Council has announced results of its 2020 Grape and Hop Inventory Results.

Highlights of the report include an increase in wine grape acreage and the fact that for the first time hops are included in this report. 

“The report gives us a benchmark to measure the growth of the hop inventory from year to year,” said Jenelle Jagmin, director of the Council, which operates within the Michigan Dept. of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD). “It includes figures for the vitis Vinifera and hybrid wine grapes, which are getting a lot of popularity in Michigan.

“Something I think is interesting to look at is the table that shows grapes grown by variety between 2017 and 2020,” she added. “Riesling is number one, it’s kind of the darling of the wine grapes. It has increased the most in the past three years.” There were 670 acres used to grow Riesling wine grapes in 2020. Other popular varieties of Vinifera wine grapes in Michigan are Chardonnay, with 320 acres; Pinot Gris, with 270; and Pinot Noir, with 250. Also popular is Cabernet Franc, with 180 acres. There were 2,325 acres of Vinifera wine grapes grown in Michigan last year.

The most popular hybrid grapes in the state were Vidal blanc, with 105 acres; Chambourcin, with 100 acres; and Marquette, with 97 acres. There were 1,050 acres of hybrid grapes grown in Michigan in 2020. 

According to Jagmin, these kind of grapes are more suitable for the inland areas of the state. There were 10,900 acres of grapes of all kinds grown in the state in 2020. There were 3,375 wine grape acres in Michigan maintained by 257 farms and 670 hop acres maintained by 68 farms. Although total grape acreage has decreased over the past few years, wine grape acreage has increased. There are more than 35 varieties of hops planted in Michigan, but Centennial, Cascade, Chinook and Cashmere have the most acreage per variety, accounting for 325 of the 670 acres.

“The incredible growth of Michigan’s craft beverage industry has a lot to do with our talented, creative, and driven entrepreneurs, but it’s also the result of producing unique, high-quality ingredients,” said MDARD Director Gary McDowell in a press release. “Fresh water, rich soils, and diverse microclimates create an ideal environment for growing robust, sophisticated inputs for every variation of craft beverage.”

Michigan grape and hop farmers were surveyed over several months to obtain acreage and variety data. The statistics are part of the Small Fruit & Hops Inventory conducted by the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service for the Michigan State Horticultural Society. 

The wine and hop results are a subset of the complete report, due out later this spring. The report is funded by a federal Specialty Crop Block Grant. For more information about Michigan’s craft beverage industry, visit michigancraftbeverage.com.