How to read a german wine label

2. Vintage

The vintage is the year the grapes were harvested. Wine is an agricultural product and consequently very dependent on the weather which in Germany, unlike more southerly climates, can be extremely variable.

3. Grape variety

The grape variety used to make a wine is the single most influential factor determining its taste. Different grapes have different flavors, just like different fruits have different flavors. For example: Riesling is a very fruit-driven grape variety providing a fine acidity. Gewürztraminer has very floral, perfumed flavors reminiscent of rose petals while Silvaner is lower in acidity and less floral, rather plain.

4. Ripeness categories

The ripeness categories are Deutscher Wein (formerly Tafelwein), Deutscher Landwein, Qualitätswein and Qualitätswein mit Prädikat. The latter is further divided into the ripeness levels Kabinett, Spätlese, Auslese, Beerenauselese, Trockenbeerenauslese and Eiswein. More about that on our Ripeness category page.

5. Level of dryness

The taste/style or level of dryness of a wine depends on the cellar master and is determined in the cellar by the winemaker; it is totally independent of the grape.

Dryness levels are not to be confused with ripeness categories which depend on the ripeness of the grapes harvested in the vineyard.

• Whether a wine is dry or sweet can be indicated on the label.
• Trocken indicates dry wine without perceptible residual sweetness. It never contains more than 9 grams of residual sugar per liter and often less. It is very dry.
• Halbtrocken wines are semi-dry and may not have more than 18 grams of residual sugar per liter. With this barely perceptible sweetness, halbtrocken wines are considered “dry” by most wine lovers.
• If none of the above dryness levels can be found on the label, the wine is most likely a sweeter style wine, but it can range from off-dry to fully sweet. Generally, the sweetness in the wine does correlate with the ripeness levels.

6. Village and vineyard

The often difficult to pronounce names on the label indicate the village where the vineyard is located (identified by the -er suffix) followed by another name (often ending in -berg [=mountain, slope] indicating the vineyard site. Proprietary names like “Liebfraumilch” and “Bishop of Riesling” have no vineyard designation, they are a blend of wines from several vineyards.

7. Appellation of origin – Wine Growing region

To identify the region compare with the following list of the 13 German wine growing regions: Ahr, Mittelrhein, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Rheingau, Nahe, Pfalz, Rheinhessen, Franken, Hessische Bergstrasse, Württemberg, Baden, Saale/Unstrut, Sachsen.

8. Producer vs. Bottler

There are about 100,000 grape growers in Germany, yet only about one fourth as many wine producers. If the label indicates “Erzeugerabfüllung” (estate bottled), it assures you that the grapes were grown and the wine was produced by one and the same grower or cooperative of growers (Winzergenossenschaft). As an alternative to “Erzeugerabfüllung,” estates and growers which grow, produce, and bottle their own wine can use the term “Gutsabfüllung” on the label. The grower or collective group of growers is responsible for and guarantees the quality of the wine. Sometimes the bottlers or shipper will assume responsibility and will be identified on the label as “Abfüller.”

9. Ripeness categories

The ripeness categories are Deutscher Wein (formerly Tafelwein), Deutscher Landwein, Qualitätswein and Qualitätswein mit Prädikat. The latter is further divided into the ripeness levels Kabinett, Spätlese, Auslese, Beerenauselese, Trockenbeerenauslese and Eiswein. More about that on our Ripeness category page.

10. Ap – number

The AP NR. or “Amtliche Prüfnummer,” meaning “official approval number” identifies the wine and is required for all qba and qmp wines. It consists of several blocks of numbers identifying the wine like:     5    169   878   0009 93

• 5 stands for the testing center, where the wine was approved
• 169 stands for the village in which the winery is located that produced the wine
• 878 is the code number for the winery
• 0009 93 reflects, this is the 9th wine tested in the year 1993 (no necessary relation to the vintage of the wine but most often the year after the vintage)

This coding enables the official testing centers to identify a wine. If there is any complaint or doubt of authenticity of the wine, sealed bottles which the winery has to keep for a number of years can be cross checked and tasted to investigate.