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Qualitätswein
The German wine classification system puts a strong emphasis on standardization and factual completeness, and was first implemented by the German Wine Law of 1971. Nearly all of Germany's vineyards are delineated and registered as one of approximately 2,600 Einzellagen ('individual sites'), and the produce from any vineyard can be used to make German wine at any quality level, as long as the must weight of the grapes reaches the designated minimum level. As the current German system does not classify vineyards by quality, the measure of wine ’quality’ is the ripeness of the grapes alone. Approximately 200 wine makers have been organised since 1910 in the Verband Deutscher Prädikats- und Qualitätsweingüter (VDP). To counter the shortcomings of the 1971 law, the VDP nowadays classifies the best vineyards by its own rules into 'VDP.Grosse Lage' (Grand cru) and 'VDP.Erste Lage' (Premier cru) based on 19th century Prussian tax maps. Most of these wine makers are based in the re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
German Wine
German wine is primarily produced in the west of Germany, along the river Rhine and its tributaries, with the oldest plantations going back to the Ancient Rome, Roman era. Approximately 60 percent of German wine is produced in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate, where 6 of the 13 regions (''Anbaugebiete'') for quality wine are situated. Germany has about 103,000 hectares (252,000 acres or 1,030 square kilometers) of vineyard, which is around one tenth of the vineyard surface in Spain, France or Italy. The total wine production is usually around 10 million hectoliters annually, corresponding to 1.3 billion bottles, which places Germany as the eighth-largest wine-producing country in the world. White wine accounts for almost two thirds of the total production. As a wine country, Germany has a mixed reputation internationally, with some consumers on the export markets associating Germany with the world's most elegant and aromatically pure white wines while other see the country mainl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kabinett
Kabinett (literal meaning: cabinet), or sometimes Kabinettwein (literal meaning: a wine set aside in a cabinet), is a German language wine term for a wine which is made from fully ripened grapes of the main harvest, typically picked in September, and are usually made in a light style. In the German wine classification system, Kabinett is the lowest level of '' Prädikatswein'', lower in ripeness than Spätlese. In Austria, Kabinett is subcategory of ''Qualitätswein'' rather than a ''Prädikatswein'', and the term always designates a dry wine.Wines from Austria: Quality Designations in Detail , accessed on May 21, 2008 In the , Kabinet is a category of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mosel (wine Region)
Mosel () is one of 13 German wine regions (''Weinbaugebiete'') for quality wines (''Qualitätswein'', formerly ''QbA'' and ''Prädikatswein''), and takes its name from the Mosel River (french: Moselle; Luxembourgish: ''Musel''). Before 1 August 2007 the region was called Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, but changed to a name that was considered more consumer-friendly. The wine region is Germany's third largest in terms of production but some consider it the leading region in terms of international prestige.J. Robinson ''Jancis Robinson's Wine Course'' Third Edition, pp. 264-265. Abbeville Press 2003 . The region covers the valleys of the rivers Mosel, Saar, and Ruwer from near the mouth of the Mosel at Koblenz and upstream to the vicinity of Trier in the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The area is known for the steep slopes of the region's vineyards overlooking the river. At 65 ° degrees incline, the steepest recorded vineyard in the world is the ''Calmont'' vineyard located on the Mo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Auslese
''Auslese'' (literal meaning: "selected harvest"; plural form is ''Auslesen'') is a German language wine term for a late harvest wine and is a riper category than Spätlese in the '' Prädikatswein'' category of the Austrian and German wine classification. The grapes are picked from selected very ripe bunches in the autumn (late November-early December), and have to be hand-picked. Generally Auslese wine can be made in only the best harvest years that have been sufficiently warm. A small proportion of the grapes may be affected by noble rot in some regions although this never dominates the character of the wine. Rheingau winemaker Schloss Johannisberg is generally credited with discovering Auslese wine in 1787. Auslesen are sometimes considered a German dessert wine, especially the wines made from botrytis infected bunches, though it is not as sweet as Eiswein, Beerenauslese (BA), or Trockenbeerenauslese (TBA) dessert wines. Auslesen can be enjoyed by themselves (''aperitif'' â ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chaptalization
Chaptalization is the process of adding sugar to unfermented grape must in order to increase the alcohol content after fermentation. The technique is named after its developer, the French chemist Jean-Antoine-Claude Chaptal. This process is not intended to make the wine sweeter, but rather to provide more sugar for the yeast to ferment into alcohol. Chaptalization has generated controversy and discontent in the French wine industry due to advantages that the process is perceived to give producers in poor-climate areas. In response to violent demonstrations by protesters in 1907, the French government began regulating the amount of sugar that can be added to wine. Chaptalization is sometimes referred to as enrichment, for example in the European Union wine regulations specifying the legality of the practice within EU. The legality of chaptalization varies by country, region, and even wine type. In general, it is legal in regions that produce grapes with low sugar content, such as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anbaugebiete
German wine regions are classified according to the quality category of the wine grown therein: ''Tafelwein, Landwein, Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete'' (QbA) and '' Prädikatswein''. The wine regions allowed to produce QbA and Prädikatswein are further subdivided into four categories according to size: ''Anbaugebiet'' (a major wine region), ''Bereich'' (a district within the wine region), ''Großlage'' (a collection of vineyards within a district) and ''Einzellage'' (a single vineyard).J. Robinson (ed) ''"The Oxford Companion to Wine"'' Third Edition pg 309 Oxford University Press 2006 A small number of ''Einzellagen'' do not belong to a ''Großlage'' and are called "großlagenfrei", but all belong to a Bereich and Anbaugebiet. The 13 major wine regions (''Anbaugebiete'') are Ahr, Baden, Franconia, Hessische Bergstraße, Mittelrhein, Mosel, Nahe, Palatinate, Rheingau, Rheinhessen, Saale-Unstrut, Saxony, and Württemberg. With the exceptions of Saxony and Saale-Un ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Franconia (wine Region)
Franconia (German: ''Franken'') is a region for quality wine in Germany situated in the north west of Bavaria in the district of Franconia, and is the only wine region in the federal state of Bavaria. In 2014, vines were grown on of land in the region. Geography The greater part of the wine region is situated in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Lower Franconia around its capital Würzburg along the Main River. There are a few areas in Middle Franconia, mainly in the Steigerwald; and a very small part in the area of Upper Franconia around Bamberg. The bends of the River Main have been used to define the region's three districts, two of which take their names from their respective geometric shape. ''Mainviereck'' District The Mainviereck ("Main square") is the westernmost district of Franconia, on the lower slopes of the Spessart hills and is one of the warmest spots in Bavaria. The special soil is mainly red sandstone which is especially suitable for growing grape vines for red ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Appellation D'origine Contrôlée
An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boundaries, such as what grapes may be grown, maximum grape yields, alcohol level, and other quality factors may also apply before an appellation name may legally appear on a wine bottle label. The rules that govern appellations are dependent on the country in which the wine was produced. History The tradition of wine appellation is very old. The oldest references are to be found in the Bible, where ''wine of Samaria'', ''wine of Carmel'', ''wine of Jezreel'', or ''wine of Helbon'' are mentioned. This tradition of appellation continued throughout the Antiquity and the Middle Ages, though without any officially sanctioned rules. Historically, the world's first exclusive (protected) vineyard zone was introduced in Chianti, Italy in 1716 and th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Late Harvest Wine
Late harvest wine is wine made from grapes left on the vine longer than usual. ''Late harvest'' is usually an indication of a sweet dessert wine, such as late harvest Riesling. Late harvest grapes are often more similar to raisins, but have been naturally dehydrated while on the vine. Botrytis cinerea, or ''noble rot'', is a mold that causes grapes to lose nearly all of their water content. Wines made from botrytis-affected grapes are generally very sweet. Noble rot Botrytis cinerea is a fungus that affects many wine grapes and causes them to shrivel into moldy raisins. The fungus responds to the humidity and warmth in the climate and attacks the grapes. As the mold penetrates the skin its spores begin to germinate, causing the water inside to evaporate and the grape to dehydrate. With the absence of water, the sugar becomes more concentrated and the botrytis begins to alter the acidity within the grape. Typically botrytis infection begins to take place in late September and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beerenauslese
''Beerenauslese'' (literally: "selection of berries") is a German language wine term for a late harvest wine with noble rot. Beerenauslese is a category in the '' Prädikatswein'' category of the Austrian and German wine classifications, and is a category above Auslese. Beerenauslese wines, often called "BA" for short, are usually made from grapes affected by noble rot, that is "botrytized" grapes. The grapes for ''Beerenauslese'' wines are those that have been individually picked. These wines are typically very sweet and rich, and most age very well. The finest Beerenauslese wines are generally considered to be made from the Riesling grape variety, as this retains significant acidity even with the extreme ripeness, which results in a wine where the sweetness is balanced and which has great longevity and which often will improve for decades. These wines are produced in very small quantities when the weather is suitable for the noble rot to form and only in vineyards with appropri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Noble Rot
Noble rot (french: pourriture noble; german: Edelfäule; it, Muffa nobile; hu, Aszúsodás) is the beneficial form of a grey fungus, ''Botrytis cinerea'', affecting wine grapes. Infestation by ''Botrytis'' requires moist conditions. If the weather stays wet, the damaging form, "grey rot", can destroy crops of grapes. Grapes typically become infected with ''Botrytis'' when they are ripe. If they are then exposed to drier conditions and become partially raisined, this form of infection is known as noble rot. Grapes picked at a certain point during infestation can produce particularly fine and concentrated sweet wine. Wines produced by this method are known as botrytized wines. Origins According to Hungarian legend, the first aszú (a wine using botrytised grapes) was made by Laczkó Máté Szepsi in 1630. However, mention of wine made from botrytised grapes appears before this in the ''Nomenklatura'' of Fabricius Balázs Sziksai, which was completed in 1576. A recently discover ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
