Germany & Austria
Germany & Austria's wine trade goes back to the Roman Empire.
The cool climate of both countries make them best suited to growing
white grapes, and the white wines produced in these regions is
some of the most highly regarded in the world.
Germany & Austria's wine trade goes back to the Roman Empire.
The cool climate of both countries make them best suited to growing
white grapes, and the white wines produced in these regions is
some of the most highly regarded in the world.
Suggest a Wine
Know a wine you
think we'd like?
Recommend it
right here »
Know a wine you
think we'd like?
Recommend it
right here »
Germany
As with many other regions in Europe, it was the Romans who brought
viticulture north to Gaul, today's Germany, about a century before Christ. Later,
the Catholic Church began to take a hand in vineyard cultivation and wine
production for sacramental and drinking purposes and monasteries owing
most of the vineyards. In the early 19th century, the Emperor Napoleon, having
conquered a large swath of the German states, wrested control of the
vineyards from the church. After the fall of Napoleon, the vineyards many of the
vineyards were broken up into smaller parcels, which is how they remain
today.
Germany's cool climate and the elevation of its wine growing regions make it
suited better to producing white than red. In fact, Germany produces some of
the best white wines in the world. Its Rieslings are world-famous. Germany
has somehow acquired a reputation for "sweet" wines, but this is not
necessarily an apt descriptor.
In addition to Riesling, German white varieties include: Bacchus, Müller-
Thurgau (very common), Kerner, Gewürztraminer, Grauer Burgunder or
Ruländer (Pinot Gris), Scheurebe, Silvaner and Weisser Burgunder (Pinot
Blanc). Typical reds include: Dornfelder, Lemberger, Portugieser,
Spätburgunder and Frühburgunder (Pinot Noir), Schwarzriesling ("black
Riesling," also called Pinot Meunier), Trollinger. Germany also produces
Sekt, its version of sparkling wine.
Classification
The German classification system is a bit complicated. Like other countries,
there are two major categories in the hierarchy, each with a number of sub-
categories:
Table Wines (rarely exported):
Qualitätswein ("Quality wine," sometimes called Q-level wines):
On top of that, German wines are cross-classified by the Verband Deutscher
Prädikatswein (VDP). Top wines are classified according to region vineyard.
You'll also see these terms on German wine labels, which identify the grower
and producer.
Weingut -- A wine-producing estate
Weinkellerei -- Wine blended the winemaker.
Winzergenossenschaft -- refers to a winegrowers' co-operative wine.
Gutsabfüllung -- Estate bottled.
Abfüller -- Refers to the bottler or shipper.
Regions
There are 13 wine-growing regions in Germany:
Ahr
Baden
Franken
Hessische Bergstrasse
Mittelrhein
Mosel-Saar-Ruwer
Nahe
Austria
With a wine history similar to that of Germany, it should come as no surprise
that Austrian and Germany would share many of the same grape varieties and
much the same classification system.
Typical white grown in Austria include: Grüner Veltliner (the most widely grown
grape), Müller-Thurgau, Neuburger, Pinot Blanc, Riesling and Welschriesling.
Red grapes include: Blauer Portugieser, Blaufränkisch and Zweigelt.
The classification system is much the same as Germany's with the addition of
the Districtus Austriae Controllatus (DAC), which is Latin for "Controlled
District of Austria," a fairly new geographical appellation, equivalent to the
French AOC. There are currently just three DACs:
Regions
There are 18 named wine-growing regions in Austria
Wachau
Kremstal
Kamptal
Traisental
Donauland
Weinviertel
Carnuntum
Thermenregion
As with many other regions in Europe, it was the Romans who brought
viticulture north to Gaul, today's Germany, about a century before Christ. Later,
the Catholic Church began to take a hand in vineyard cultivation and wine
production for sacramental and drinking purposes and monasteries owing
most of the vineyards. In the early 19th century, the Emperor Napoleon, having
conquered a large swath of the German states, wrested control of the
vineyards from the church. After the fall of Napoleon, the vineyards many of the
vineyards were broken up into smaller parcels, which is how they remain
today.
Germany's cool climate and the elevation of its wine growing regions make it
suited better to producing white than red. In fact, Germany produces some of
the best white wines in the world. Its Rieslings are world-famous. Germany
has somehow acquired a reputation for "sweet" wines, but this is not
necessarily an apt descriptor.
In addition to Riesling, German white varieties include: Bacchus, Müller-
Thurgau (very common), Kerner, Gewürztraminer, Grauer Burgunder or
Ruländer (Pinot Gris), Scheurebe, Silvaner and Weisser Burgunder (Pinot
Blanc). Typical reds include: Dornfelder, Lemberger, Portugieser,
Spätburgunder and Frühburgunder (Pinot Noir), Schwarzriesling ("black
Riesling," also called Pinot Meunier), Trollinger. Germany also produces
Sekt, its version of sparkling wine.
Classification
The German classification system is a bit complicated. Like other countries,
there are two major categories in the hierarchy, each with a number of sub-
categories:
Table Wines (rarely exported):
- Tafelwien: Table wine
Landwein: Land wine, rather like France's Vin de Pays)
Qualitätswein ("Quality wine," sometimes called Q-level wines):
- Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete (QbA): the basic level of
quality.
Qualitätswein mit Prädikat (QmP): Higher quality wine whose grapes
have achieved a certain level of ripeness. With one exception, the riper
the grape, the fruitier and more expensive the wine. The levels of
ripeness are:
- Kabinett -- Made from grapes picked several days after the QbA
grapes are picked. Solid, every-day wines. - Spätlese -- Made from grapes harvested 12-14 days after
Kabinett grapes. Tend to make fuller. More intense wines. - Auslese -- Made from late harvest grapes that have been hand-
selected. Sweeter, but still balanced. - Beerenauslese -- Dessert wine made from grapes that have
been left on the vine longer than the Auslese grapes, infected
with Botrytis, ore the "noble rot." - Eiswein ("ice wine") -- Also dessert wine, made from
Beerenauslese grapes that have frozen on the vine. - Trockenbeerenauslese ("dry berries selected out") --- The
exception to the ripeness rule, "Trocken" wine are dry and
come most hand-picked grapes. They are the most expensive
German wines.
On top of that, German wines are cross-classified by the Verband Deutscher
Prädikatswein (VDP). Top wines are classified according to region vineyard.
You'll also see these terms on German wine labels, which identify the grower
and producer.
Weingut -- A wine-producing estate
Weinkellerei -- Wine blended the winemaker.
Winzergenossenschaft -- refers to a winegrowers' co-operative wine.
Gutsabfüllung -- Estate bottled.
Abfüller -- Refers to the bottler or shipper.
Regions
There are 13 wine-growing regions in Germany:
Ahr
Baden
Franken
Hessische Bergstrasse
Mittelrhein
Mosel-Saar-Ruwer
Nahe
Austria
With a wine history similar to that of Germany, it should come as no surprise
that Austrian and Germany would share many of the same grape varieties and
much the same classification system.
Typical white grown in Austria include: Grüner Veltliner (the most widely grown
grape), Müller-Thurgau, Neuburger, Pinot Blanc, Riesling and Welschriesling.
Red grapes include: Blauer Portugieser, Blaufränkisch and Zweigelt.
The classification system is much the same as Germany's with the addition of
the Districtus Austriae Controllatus (DAC), which is Latin for "Controlled
District of Austria," a fairly new geographical appellation, equivalent to the
French AOC. There are currently just three DACs:
Weinviertel (for Grüner Veltliner)
Mittelburgenland (for Blaufränkisch)
Traisental (for both Riesling and Grüner Veltliner)
Regions
There are 18 named wine-growing regions in Austria
Wachau
Kremstal
Kamptal
Traisental
Donauland
Weinviertel
Carnuntum
Thermenregion
| About Vinapedia Contact Us Legal Notices Copyright, Bon Vivant Media, Inc. Some rights reserved. |
Palatinate
Rheingau
Rheinhessen
Saale-Unstrut
Sächsische Weinstrasse
Württemberg
Rheingau
Rheinhessen
Saale-Unstrut
Sächsische Weinstrasse
Württemberg
Neusiedlersee
Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
Mittelburgenland
Südburgenland
Wien (Vienna)
Südoststeiermark
Südsteiermark
Weststeiermark
Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
Mittelburgenland
Südburgenland
Wien (Vienna)
Südoststeiermark
Südsteiermark
Weststeiermark
Fast Facts
- The French Emperor Napoleon is largely
responsible for the modern German wine
industry - Quality German & Austrian wines are
classified by the ripeness of the grapes
when picked - The cool climate of Germany & Austria is
right for the fruity white wines they produce - The main grape of Germany is Riesling;
Austria, Grüner Veltliner
Vinapedia.net
Wine knowledge for the wine novice
Shop for Wines
Take your pick...
click here »
Take your pick...
click here »