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 Prädikatsweingüter (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 regions of Mosel, Pfalz, and Franken.
The classification of wines has been reorganized since 1 August 2009 by the EU wine market organization. The traditional German wine classification remained mostly unchanged, as the European system follows the origin-related system like in Germany and most areas of France (AOC). The already existing protection of geographical indication was transmitted through this step as well to the wine classification.Verordnung (EG) Nr. 479/2008 des Rates vom 29. April 2008 über die gemeinsame Marktorganisation für Wein chapter 27.Steven Sidore, Winners and Losers of the Revised German Wine Law by: TRINK MAGAZINE, 19 May 2021.
Quality designations
There are two major categories of German wine: table and "quality" wine. Table wine includes the designations Deutscher Wein (previously Tafelwein) and Landwein. Unlike the supposed equivalents of "Vin de Table" / "Vino da Tavola" and "Indicazione Geografica Tipica" / "Vin de Pays", production levels are not high, and these wines are typically exported to the United States. In 2005, Tafelwein and Landwein only accounted for 3.6% of total production. In Baden, there is a growing trend to release high-end wines as Landwein.
Quality wine is divided into two types:
Qualitätswein, or quality wine from a specific region. This is wine from one of the 13 wine-growing regions (Anbaugebiete), and the region must be shown on the label. It is a basic level of everyday, mostly inexpensive quaffing wines. The grapes are at a fairly low level of ripeness, with must weights of 51°Oe to 72°Oe. The alcohol content of the wine must be at least 7% by volume, and chaptalization (adding sugar to the unfermented grape juice to boost the final alcohol level, which in no way alters the sweetness) is often used. Qualitätswein range from dry to semi-sweet, and the style is often indicated on the label, along with the designation Qualitätswein and the region. Some top-level dry wines are officially Qualitätswein although they would qualify as Prädikatswein. All dry wines produced by members of the VDP association are always declared as Qualitätswein.
Prädikatswein, or superior quality wine. Known as Qualitätswein mit Prädikat (QmP) (quality wine with specific attributes) until August 2007, this is the top level of German wines. These prominently display a Prädikat (ripeness level designation) on the label and may not be chaptalized. Prädikatswein range from dry to intensely sweet, but unless it is specifically indicated that the wine is dry or off-dry, these wines always contain a noticeable amount of residual sugar. Prädikatswein must be produced from allowed varieties in one of the 39 subregions (Bereich) of one of the 13 wine-growing regions, although it is the region rather than the subregion which is mandatory information on the label. (Some of the smaller regions, such as Rheingau, consist of only one subregion.)
The different Prädikat (superior quality wine) designations used are as follows, in order of increasing sugar levels in the must:
Kabinett – literally "cabinet" fully ripened light wines from the main harvest, typically semi-sweet with crisp acidity, but can be dry if designated so. This term may have originated as indicating the winemaker felt it was good enough to put in his own cabinet rather than offer it for sale. Spätlese – meaning "late harvest" typically half-dry, often (but not always) sweeter and fruitier than Kabinett. The grapes are picked at least 7 days after normal harvest, so they are riper. While waiting to pick the grapes carries a risk of the crop being ruined by rain, in warm years and from good sites much of the harvest can reach Spätlese level. Spätlese can be a relatively full-bodied dry wine if designated so. While Spätlese means late harvest the wine is not as sweet as a dessert wine, as the "late harvest" term is often used in US wines. Auslese – meaning "select harvest" made from very ripe, hand selected bunches, typically semi-sweet or sweet, sometimes with some noble rot character. Sometimes Auslese is also made into a powerful dry wine, but the designation Auslese trocken has been discouraged after the introduction of Grosses Gewächs. Auslese is the Prädikat which covers the widest range of wine styles, and can be a dessert wine. Beerenauslese – meaning "select berry harvest" made from overripe grapes individually selected from bunches and often affected by noble rot, making rich sweet dessert wine. Trockenbeerenauslese – meaning "select dry berry harvest" or "dry berry selection" made from selected overripe shrivelled grapes often affected by noble rot making extremely rich sweet wines. "Trocken" in this phrase refers to the grapes being dried on the vine rather than the resulting wine being a dry style. Eiswein (ice wine) made from grapes that have been naturally frozen on the vine, making a very concentrated wine. Must reach at least the same level of sugar content in the must as a Beerenauslese. The most classic Eiswein style is to use only grapes that are not affected by noble rot. Until the 1980s, the Eiswein designation was used in conjunction with another Prädikat (which indicated the ripeness level of the grapes before they had frozen), but is now considered a Prädikat of its own. The minimum must weight requirements for the different Prädikat designations are as follows.Deutsches Weininstitut (German Wine Institute): Must weights Many producers, especially top-level producers, exceed the minimum requirements by a wide margin.
{| class="wikitable" ! Prädikat || Minimum must weight || colspan=2 | Examples of requirements || Minimum alcohol level in the wine
| || Dependent on grape variety and wine-growing region || Riesling from Mosel || Riesling from Rheingau ||
| Kabinett || 67–82°Oe || 70°Oe || 73°Oe || 7%
| Spätlese || 76–90°Oe || 76°Oe || 85°Oe || 7% |- | Auslese || 83–100°Oe || 83°Oe || 95°Oe || 7%
| Beerenauslese, Eiswein || 110–128°Oe || 110°Oe || 125°Oe || 5.5%
| Trockenbeerenauslese || 150–154°Oe || 150°Oe || 150°Oe || 5.5%
This does not necessarily determine the sweetness of the final wine, because the winemaker may choose to ferment the wine fully or let some residual sugar remain.
Special designations
In certain regions, additional rules are applied to how a wine is classified. These special names represent special characters.
Sweetness of the wine
The sugar content in the finished wine can be indicated by the following designations for Qualitätswein and Prädikatswein.Deutsches Weininstitut: Sparkling wine (Sekt) , accessed on March 25, 2009. For sparkling wines (Sekt), many of the same designations are used, but have a different meaning.
{| class="wikitable" ! Designation || English translation || colspan =3 | Maximum sugar level allowed
| || || Low acid wines || Medium acid wines || High acid wines
| trocken || dry || 4 grams per liter || acid level in grams per liter + 2 || 9 grams per liter
| halbtrocken || half-dry || 12 grams per liter || acid level in grams per liter + 10 || 18 grams per liter |- | feinherb || off-dry || colspan = 3 | Unregulated designation, slightly sweeter than halbtrocken
| lieblich, mild or restsüß || semi-sweet || colspan = 3 | Usually not specially marked as such on the label.Follows by default from their Prädikat in the absence of the above designations.
| süß or edelsüß || sweet || colspan = 3 | Usually not specially marked as such on the label.Follows by default from their Prädikat in the absence of the above designations.
Colour
There are also colour designations that can be used on the label:
Weißwein – white wine May be produced only from white varieties. This designation is seldom used. Rotwein – red wine May be produced only from red varieties with sufficient maceration to make the wine red. Sometimes used for clarification if the producer also makes rosés from the same grape variety. Roséwein – rosé wine Produced from red varieties with a shorter maceration, the wine must have pale red or clear red colour. Weißherbst – rosé wine or blanc de noirs A rosé wine which must conform to special rules: must be Qualitätswein or Prädikatswein, single variety and be labelled with the varietal name. There are no restrictions as to the colour of the wine, so they range from pale gold to deep pink. Weißherbst wines also range from dry to sweet, such as rosé Eiswein from Spätburgunder.
Extra ripeness or higher quality
Some producers also use additional propriate designations to denote quality or ripeness level within a Prädikat. These are outside the scope of the German wine law. Especially for Auslese, which can cover a wide range of sweetness levels, the presence of any of these designations tends to indicate a sweet dessert wine rather than a semi-sweet wine. These designations are all unregulated.
Goldkapsel – gold capsule A golden capsule or foil on the bottle. Denotes a wine considered better by the producer. Usually means a Prädikatswein that is sweeter or more intense, or indicates an auction wine made in a very small lot. Stars *, ** or *** Usually means that a Prädikatswein has been harvested at a higher level of ripeness than the minimum required, and can mean that the wine is sweeter or more intense. Fuder (vat) numbers Usually indicated for better wines and often the numbers are arranged in some logical order, although the same numbers need not return in each vintage. This practice seems to be most common for semi-sweet and sweet wines in the Mosel region.
Special and regional wine types
There are also a number of specialty and regional wines, considered as special version of some quality category. Here are some of them:
Liebfraumilch or Liebfrauenmilch A semi-sweet Qualitätswein from the Rheingau, Nahe, Rheinhessen or Pfalz, consisting at least 70% of the varieties Riesling, Müller-Thurgau, Silvaner or Kerner. In practice there is very little Riesling in Liebfraumilch since varietally labelled Riesling wines tend to fetch a higher price. Liebfraumilch may not carry a varietal designation on the label. Liebfraumilch is one of Germany's most well known wines, and is in principle a medium-quality wine designation although more commonly perceived to be a low-quality wine both at home and on the export market. Moseltaler An off-dry/semi-sweet Qualitätswein cuvée from the Mosel wine region (Moseltal is Moselle Valley in German) made from the following white grape varieties: Riesling, Müller-Thurgau, Elbling and Kerner. May not carry a varietal designation on the label, and sold under a uniform logotype. Must have a residual sugar of 15–30 grams per liter and a minimum acidity of 7 grams per liter. Basically a Liebfraumilch-lookalike from Mosel. Rotling A wine produced from a mixture of red and white varieties. A Rotling must have pale red or clear red color Schillerwein A Rotling from the Württemberg wine-growing region, which must be Qualitätswein or Prädikatswein. Badisch Rotgold