🏷️ Prädikatswein
The top German category: wine graded by grape ripeness, with no added sugar.
Prädikatswein is the top category of German wine, graded by the ripeness of the grapes, with no sugar added. Prädikatswein is the top German wine category. Wines here are graded by grape ripeness, and no sugar is added. The riper and sweeter the berries, the higher the level. It is a German system, and similar ones are used in other countries: the Austrian and Czech predicates stand next to it.
The category has six levels. The simplest is Kabinett, followed by Spätlese (late harvest), Auslese (select harvest), Beerenauslese (BA, selected berries), Trockenbeerenauslese (TBA, dried berries) and Eiswein, ice wine. Spätlese and Auslese are more often slightly sweet, while TBA and Eiswein are very sweet dessert wines.
Prädikatswein belongs to the large group of protected designations of origin, PDO. Grape ripeness is measured in degrees Oechsle, a scale of juice density. Each level and each area has its own minimum values.
It is worth knowing that the level name speaks of ripeness, but not always of the sweetness of the wine. There are also dry wines at the Kabinett or Spätlese level.
What it includes
How it connects to Wine
🏷️ Prädikatswein → kind of → 🏷️ Protected designation of origin (wine) → kind of → 🏷️ Wine classifications → kind of → 🍷 Wine
Links
- Part of
- 🏷️ Protected designation of origin (wine)
- Where it applies
- 🗺️ German wine
- Similar and different
- 🏷️ Qualitätswein, 🏷️ Kabinett, 🏷️ Spätlese, 🏷️ Auslese, 🏷️ Beerenauslese, 🏷️ Trockenbeerenauslese, 🏷️ Eiswein, 🏷️ Oechsle scale, 🏷️ Austrian Prädikatswein, 🏷️ Czech and Slovak predicate wines
Frequently asked questions
What is Prädikatswein?
The top German wine category: levels are set by grape ripeness, and no sugar is added to the wine.
Which levels does Prädikatswein have?
Kabinett, Spätlese, Auslese, BA, TBA and Eiswein.
Is Prädikatswein always sweet?
No. The level name speaks of grape ripeness; there are also dry wines at the Kabinett or Spätlese level.
What to read next
- 🏷️ Qualitätswein — German quality wine from one of 13 regions; adding sugar is allowed.
- 🏷️ Austrian Prädikatswein — Austrian ripeness levels from Spätlese to TBA, with their own Ausbruch and Strohwein levels.
- 🏷️ Czech and Slovak predicate wines — Czech and Slovak grape ripeness levels from kabinet to ice wine and straw wine.
- 🏷️ Oechsle scale — A German measure of grape juice sweetness based on its density.
Similar
🏷️ DAC · 🏷️ Qualitätswein · 🏷️ DOC (Italy) · 🏷️ DOCa / DOQ · 🏷️ Vino de Pago · 🏷️ Vino de Calidad con Indicación Geográfica
⚠️ Wine contains alcohol: adults only, drink in moderation. Wine usually contains sulphites; egg white or milk proteins are sometimes used for fining — important for allergies and for vegans.