German Wine Labels 101
by Jan Martindale
To the uninitiated, and to those of us who never
studied German, trying to decipher a German wine label can be a
daunting experience. Luckily there are some basics that can help
de-mystify the undertaking.
Like most European wines, German wines are named
for the region in which the grapes were grown rather than the type
of grape. There are currently 13 legally designated wine growing
regions in Germany with many sub (and sub-sub regions). The most
important of these include Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Rheingau, Rheinhessen,
Pfalz and Nahe.
German wines also carry a designation of their relative
quality. The bottom three categories are Tafelwein (or basic
table wine), Landwein (a step above, somewhat akin to the
French "vin de pays") and Qualitätswein bestimmter
Anbaugebiete, or QbA. This is "quality wine" from
one of the 13 prescribed regions and it comprises the bulk of wine
produced in Germany.
Qualitätswein mit Prädikat (QmP)
is a designation given to wines above the QbA level meaning "quality
wine with special attributes." Prädikat (PRAY di cat)
wines fall into six categories, depending on the ripeness of the
grapes, specifically, the amount of sugar in them at harvest. It
is not necessarily an indication of the sweetness of the resulting
wine, which varies depending on the fermentation. (Dry wines bear
the word Trocken; half dry wines are labeled Halbtrocken.)
Below are the Prädikat levels in order of ripeness.
Kabinett (KAB ee net) is typically light
and delicate and very food friendly.
Spätlese (SCHPATE lay seh), or "late
harvest" ranges from dry to semi-sweet with sweetness well-balanced
by acidity.
Auslese (OUSE lay seh), or "selected
harvest," is picked even riper, from hand selected bunches
of grapes. It is usually lush with some sweetness.
Beerenauslese (BEER en OUSE lay seh), or
"berry selected," is made from individually selected overripe
grapes, often affected by noble rot (a benevolent fungus which,
given the right conditions, dehydrates the grapes, resulting in
wonderfully concentrated wines). It has a deep, honeyed richness.
Trockenbeerenauslese (TROH ken BEER en OUSE
lay seh) or "dry berry selected" is the ripest Prädikat,
made from hand selected individual grapes that have shriveled on
the vine due to noble rot. It is the richest, sweetest, rarest and
most expensive Prädikat and many vintages yield none at all.
Eiswein (ICE vine) is a special category
made from grapes that have frozen solid on the vines. The ice crystals
are removed leaving only highly concentrated juice for the wine.
(Pronunciation guides courtesy of Wine for Dummies.)
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