More about German wine: Germany is the 4th largest wine-producing country in Europe. Mainly white wines are produced in Germany (63%). The trend of producing more red wine appears to have temporarily come to a halt. There is a great variety of grapes but Riesling and Spätburgunder are the most common (without really being dominant). Together they represent 30% of the total vines planted. The white grapes Müller-Thurgau (Rivaner) and Gewürztraminer or the purple grapes Spätburgunder and Dornfelder are also well-known. The white grape Elbling is also one of the oldest grape varieties in Europe. The wine regions are divided as follows: Ahr, Baden, franken, Hessische Bergstrasse, Mittelrhein, Model, Nahe, Pfalz, Rheingau, Rheinhessen, Saale-Unstrut, Sachsen & Württemberg. German wines are also divided into quality classes. The lowest class is naturally the 'Landwein' (country wine), followed by 'Deutscher Wein ohne Herkunftsbezeichnung' (German wine without designation of origin, previously called Tafelwein). A better quality of wine is 'Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete' (Q.b.A). This category of German wine represents the largest group of German wines. After that it really gets interesting: Prädikatsweine. Prädikatsweine is subject to the strictest requirements in terms of grape (variety), maturity; elegance and of course, origin. In this category we differentiate between 'rather simple' to 'extremely complex' wine: Kabinett, Spätlese, Auslese, Beerenauslese, Trockenbeerenauslese and Eiswein. Over-ripe grapes with noble rot (botrytis) are used to produce Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese. With Trockenbeerenauslese raisin-like grapes are even used. This is an absolute first-class wine that can be laid down for decades. Beerenauslese can also be laid down for a very long time. Eiswein is very special too, if only because of the great risk the producer takes. It has to be at least -7°C to pick the grapes. The grapes also have to be pressed frozen. There are two extra quality designations among Eiswein. Classic Eiswein and Selection Eiswein.
