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What does ice wine mean?
In Germany,Eiswein is the sixth of six Prädikat levels within the quality system. The grapes for an Eiswein must have a minimum must weight of 110 to 128 degrees Oechsle, depending on the growing region. Apart from this, the wine must meet the criteria of the quality wine category. The special feature of ice wine is that the grapes are harvested and pressed in a frozen state. They must be healthy, i.e. not infected by the noble fungus Botrytis cinerea, and remain on the vine until the onset of frost. Only when the temperature has been minus seven degrees or less for at least five hours are they harvested and pressed immediately. Since the water in the berries is then still frozen, the ingredients are particularly concentrated. Ice wine is always made sweet.
In Austria, the healthy, frozen grapes must have a minimum must weight of 25 degrees KMW for wines with the predicate Eiswein. Ice wines here are also always sweet