One of the last harvests of the year: in the dark, people trudge through Franconia's vineyards and pick frozen grapes. This creates a rarity in the wine cellar.
Würzburg (dpa / lby) - Equipped with a headlamp, gloves and pruning shears: At temperatures of minus eleven degrees Celsius, frozen grapes for noble sweet ice wine were harvested in Franconia on Tuesday morning. Wine grower Christian Reiss from Würzburg is hoping for 80 liters of the wine specialty, which will be available in small 0.375 liter bottles from April or May. "There will be about 220 bottles, that's great, that's awesome," he said shortly after the manual work with six helpers in his vineyard. For ice wine, the fully ripe grapes have to be frozen in the press. The sweet juice then drips from the wine press.
According to the winemaker, the Silvaner grapes had a high value of 205 degrees Oechsle. Degree Oechsle is a unit of measure for the weight of unfermented grape must. The must weight indicates the proportion of dissolved substances (especially sugar) in the grape juice, an indication of the possible alcohol content of the later wine. "The legal minimum for ice wine is 125 degrees Oechsle," explained Reiss.
According to the Franconian Winegrowers Association, only a few winegrowers left grapes for ice wine this year. Ice wines are considered the culmination of a vintage. They are mainly drunk as an aperitif or with desserts and cheese and enjoy a worldwide reputation. A bottle costs 20 to 70 euros, sometimes more. According to records, ice wines have been produced in Franconia since 1794.
