
The Wines "Birth Certificate"...

Just like you can't judge a book by it's cover... the same goes for wine! Learning to read a wine label makes for great conversation, and here you'll find what all those names and numbers mean... remember, "eye-catching" labels/bottles don't always reflect the quality of the wine inside...
1) The name and address of the wine estate (Weingut)
2) The vintage*/year in which the grapes were harvested.
3) The grape variety*
4) The quality level of the wine, indicating the ripeness of the grapes at harvest.
5) The style of wine. Here, an off-dry (half-trocken) wine.
6) The town (+er) and the vineyard* from which the grapes originate.
7) The specified region -in Germany, there are 13 specified wine-growing regions and the wine must originate 100% from that region.
8) Wine bottled and produced by the grower or cooperative of growers. Erzeugerabfullung- producer-bottled Gutsabfullung- estate-bottled.
9) The quality control number, indicating the wine has passed the chemical and sensory tests required of all German quality wines.
10) The alcohol content.
11) The liquid content.
*Note: If a vintage, vineyard site or grape variety (optional declarations) are mentioned on a label, at least 85% of the wine must originate from that vintage, vineyard site or grape variety.
