Germany
Quality levelsThe 1971 classification of German wines divides them into the following groups:
Deutscher Tafelwein is the equivalent of table wine or vin de table in other countries. These wines may be chaptalized.
Deutscher Landwein German country wine
Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete (QbA) Wine from a specific region
Qualitätswein mit Prädikat - the top level
Qualitätswein mit Prädikat
From 2007/2008 onwards, with a transitional period of 2 years, Qualitätswein mit Prädikat will be renamed Prädikatswein.
QmP wines are ranked by ripeness as:
Kabinett fully ripened light wine
Spätlese a late harvest wine, may or may not be sweeter than kabinett
Auslese made from selected very ripe grapes, usually sweet
Beerenauslese made from individually selected overripe grapes often affected by noble rot, making rich sweet dessert wine
Trockenbeerenauslese made from selected overripe shrivelled grapes often affected by noble rot making extremely rich sweet wines.In addition there is the category
Eiswein (ice wine) made from grapes that have been naturally frozen on the vine, making a very concentrated wine. The finest examples usually are not affected by noble rot
Eiswein BA (Eisweinbeerenauslese) containing noble rot is considered a higher grade than normal Eiswein.
.jpg)
