German Wine Classification - Overview of Categories

Overview of Categories

Two of the basic parameters in the classification of German wines are sweetness and quality. Wine quality is to some extent a subjective judgement, and within the framework of any formal wine classification, different producers achieve very different results. However, the different quality categories used in classification of German wines are to some extent related to varying wine-making practices that generally are associated with different levels of quality:

• The EU category "quality wines" is by definition supposed to be superior to the category "table wines".
• A category that allows chaptalization is generally inferior to a category that does not allow chaptalization, if wines that are "true to terroir" are to be produced.
• A category that may only be produced in certain vineyard sites is generally superior to a category which may be produced anywhere.
• A category that requires the grapes or the wine to fulfill quality criteria (e.g. ripeness of the grapes) that are so stringent that they can not be met by most vineyard sites in most vintages, can also be considered superior to categories which can be produced from almost any vineyard in almost any vintage.

Applying these distinctions to the categories in German wine classification gives the following overview. The table is primarily drawn up with wines produced from riesling grapes in mind.

Sweetness	Indicative sugar level	Typical quality level
	grams per liter	Low	Medium	Medium to high	High
		Chaptalization allowed		Chaptalization not allowed
		Table wine (EU)	Quality wine (EU)	From any vineyard in any vintage	Only from classified vineyards or Usually not possible to produce in any vineyard in any vintage
Intensely sweet	>150, sometimes >200				Trockenbeerenauslese (Eiswein)
Sweet	100-150				Eiswein Beerenauslese Auslese (Especially if Goldkapsel or *** has been added)
Semi-sweet	30-60	Tafelwein	QbA Liebfraumilch	Spätlese Kabinett	Auslese (Especially from Mosel) Erste Lage Spätlese Erste Lage Kabinett
Off-dry Can taste "internationally dry" if the acid level is sufficient	10-20	Tafelwein Landwein	QbA feinherb QbA halbtrocken Classic	Spätlese feinherb Kabinett feinherb Spätlese halbtrocken Kabinett halbtrocken	Auslese feinherb Auslese halbtrocken Charta
Dry	0-9	Landwein	QbA trocken Classic	Spätlese trocken Kabinett trocken	Grosses Gewächs Erstes Gewächs Erste Lage QbA Selection Auslese trocken