Latvia

Latvia - Country Overview (Wine Context)

• Location: Northern Europe, on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Estonia, Lithuania, Russia, and Belarus.
• Capital: Riga.
• Area: 64,589 square kilometres (24,938 square miles).
• Population (2025 est.): About 1.9 million people.

Wine and Viticulture Overview

• Wine climate: Cool northern climate with short growing seasons and cold winters.
• Viticulture status: Very limited grape wine production; viticulture is mainly experimental and small-scale.
• Main growing areas: Southern and western Latvia, including sheltered inland and coastal locations.
• Typical grape varieties: Cold-hardy hybrids such as Zilga, Solaris, Rondo.
• Wine styles: Fruit wines dominate, with small quantities of grape wines and experimental styles.
• Industry notes: Latvia has a long tradition of fruit wine production alongside emerging grape viticulture.

Map of Latvia

Maps

Wine in Latvia

Latvia is located in Northern Europe on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Estonia, Lithuania, Belarus, and Russia. Due to its cool climate and short growing season, traditional grape viticulture is limited, and wine production has developed mainly outside the classic European grape-wine model.

Latvian wine production focuses primarily on fruit wines, made from apples, berries, rhubarb, and other locally grown produce. Small experimental vineyards using cold-hardy and hybrid grape varieties exist, particularly in southern Latvia, but grape wine production remains small in scale.

Most wines are produced for domestic consumption and range from dry to sweet styles. Production is typically artisanal, emphasizing local ingredients, adaptation to climate, and small-batch output rather than large commercial volumes.