During the night of November 30th, some winegrowers in the Nahe, Moselle, Rheinhessen, Pfalz, Franken and Rheingau winegrowing regions harvested their ice wine grapes at frosty temperatures. According to the German Wine Institute (DWI), this early time for the Eiswein harvest is very beneficial to the quality of the wine, as the grapes for Eiswein production must be as healthy as possible. The very good condition of the grapes from the current vintage offers good conditions for high-quality ice wines. Mostly Riesling grapes were harvested, which are well suited for ice wine making due to their later ripening.
In recent years, winegrowers often had to wait until January or February of the following year for the necessary minimum temperature of minus seven degrees Celsius. In Franconia, the thermometer for the harvest of the noble sweet speciality sank to minus twelve degrees.
(uka / photo: German Wine Institute)