Germany Flashcards
(13 cards)
Wheare are the majority of the vineyards clustered in Germany?
SW corner of Germany
near borders of Belgium, France and Switzerland
(49 Lat or above)
Germany
climate: cool continental with strong moderating influences to rivers + mountains
ropo: rolling hilles + rivers to steep hillside vineyards on river banks
soil: varies, best vineyards on heat-retaining soils and rock (slate + basalt)
white (70%): riesling, muller-Thurgau, silvaner
red: spatburgender
German viticulture
vineyards: steep, south facing hillsides = max sunlight + higher temperature to achieve ripeness
grapes: enjoy long cool growing season, often struggle to fully ripen
most vineyards planted along rivers (Rhine, Mosel…)
climate moderate, reflection of sun
Germany vinification
vast majority fermented in inox or (L) oak casks
chaptalization = 0 law for most quality levels, controversial
fermented dry (trocken)
off-dry or lusciously sweet
wine law (germany)
Qualitatsweind (PDO)
quality wine from one of the 13 major regions called anbaugebiete
including top trocken W
Pradikafswein (PDO) sub-set of qualitatswein) 6 levels categorized by ripeness at harvest often but not necessarily sweet
landwein (PGI) regional wines rarely exposed
wein (o ind geo)
Pradikatswein (Germany)
levels of quality
trockenbeerenauslese (TBA) Eiswein Beerenauslese Auslese * Spatlese * Kabinett *
- can be fermented dry
look at ABY “trocken”
to determine wether a wine is dry
VDP
Verband Deutscher Pradikatsweingutler (Germany)
German association of 200+ producers committed to quality by emphasizing the tradition of making dry riesling from the best terroir or vineyard sites
The quality levels the VDP set forth = + restrictive classification of vineyards (or einzellagen)
emulates Grand Cru model of Burgundy
Grosses Gewachs (GG) Germany
dry (trocken) wines from the top
vineyard sites in the VDP classification
Mosel
Germany
Germany oldest winemaking region + one of the greatest locations for the pure expression of riesling
location: along the mosel river, some of the most northerly vineyards in the world
climate: cool continental, moderated by mosel river
topo: very steep vineyards, among steepest in the world facing to capture the warmth of the sun
soil: slate (porous _ heath retraining)
grape: riesling
viti: long growing season to achieve ripeness, climate (N) = challenge
harvesting grapes generally + acidity - sugar
vini: mainly inox, residual left to counterbalance + acidity - ABC 8%)
Rheingau (Germany)
Location: south of Moses on the Rhine River W/A backdrop of the taunus mountains
Climate: continental ,slightly warmer
taunus mountains provide protection
Rhine Riverreflects sun provides additional light for photosynthesis and warmth for ripening
soil: mix of slate, etc
topo: Rheingau boasts one long S facing slope on the N bank of the Rhine River
white: riesling
red: spatburgunder
viti: + reliable ripeness than mosel
Rheinhessen (Germany)
Location: largest wine region in Germany S of Rheingau
climate: continental
topo: flat, fertile farmland
soi: red sandstone mix w/ slate
white: riesling (best but zero most planted), muller-thurgau, silvaner
viti: best vineyards on small strip along the steep w/ bank of the Rhine
Quality ranges from Liebfraumilch (ex: bluenun) vp to the top vineyards for modern, dry riesling
What happened in the 1980s?
Germany
over 60% of all German wine exports were of Liebfraumilch. This sweet, cheap wine (mainly made from muller-Thurgau) was extremely popular.
However, if severely damaged the image of quality german wine for decades
Pfalz (Germany)
Location: contiguous w/alsace, despite the Rhine River separating both regions. Vosges w/alsace = Haardt w/Pfalz, less sunny environnement
climate: latitude sun + dry
one of the warmest in Germany
soil: limestone
white: riesling, weissburgunder, grauburgunder
red: spatburgunder
viti: ++ sun = better ripening, less challenging than other areas
vini: focus on dry wines
