Riesling is, arguably, the world’s greatest white wine, prized for reflecting site and vintage with fascinating nuance, offering unrivalled longevity. Germany is Riesling central: the famous slopes along the rivers Rhine, Mosel, Saar, Ruwer and Nahe produce the most compelling examples of the grape variety, and, indeed some of the most beguiling white wines in the world. These come in a bewildering spectrum of styles, not helped by obscure German nomenclature, but do not let that put you off…

The most common misconception about German Riesling is that it will be sweet. Many indeed are, and in doing so produce arguably the wine world’s most beguiling lightness of touch – often with the result that the wine can taste sweeter than it actually is (hence the confusion). So the first rule to remember is that sweeter styles – from off-dry to luscious – are mostly restricted to the regions where this unique interplay of sweetness and acidity is taken to the hilt: in Mosel/Saar/Ruwer, Nahe and Rheingau.

The easiest way of determining the sweetness of Riesling is the alcohol level. Dry wines will have at least 11.5% of ABV; anything above 12% will taste dry. The German term trocken, meaning dry, is also helpful. Most people only focus on residual sugar, ignoring acidity, but it is this element that makes Riesling into Riesling. And the very best of German Riesling are among the most beguiling high-wire acts in all of wine, teetering between killer acid and come-hither sweetness.

German wine law, in accordance with wine European law, has four levels. The lowest of these is Deutscher Wein, which is not a ‘protected origin’. The wine here must be German but is neither quantitively nor qualitatively of any significance. Everything above this level enjoys ‘protected origin’ status. Landwein must be 85% from one of 26 designated areas, but this is only of any real interest in Baden, where it is embraced by a rebellious alternative movement. Most German wine is Qualitätswein, which must be from one of the 13 designated wine regions. While this can be chaptalized (i.e. made with added sugar), most German Grosse Gewächse, or GGs (a category of dry wine from a single classified site under a private classification of elite association VDP (Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter)) are in this category. Prädikatswein, chiefly used for Riesling, has the same standards as Qualitätswein but cannot be chaptalised. It has six distinct sub-categories, determined by ripeness at harvest, and explained in detail below.

Prädikatsweine are cultural artefacts, resulting from the selective harvesting of Riesling grapes in historic, often legendary and steep slopes in formerly marginal climates. The first thing to understand about the Prädikate of this classification – namely Kabinett, Spätlese, Auslese, Beerenauslese, Trockenbeerenauslese and Eiswein – is that they are determined by the ripeness and sugar level of the grapes at harvest. This is why the categories of Kabinett, Spätlese and Auslese can be dry. While the influential VDP association has adopted a policy of restricting the Prädikate to residually sweet wines, you will still find Kabinett and occasionally Spätlese or Auslese trocken. The second thing to remember is that residual sugar is only half the picture – the other half being acidity. One element only makes sense if you also have the other, as their interaction governs the taste.

Kabinett is a unique wine style whose chief virtue is lightness. What other white wine packs so much flavour, sheer energy and joy into such a slender package? Kabinett is the lowest ripeness level of Riesling and is made from grapes that are just-ripe, or ripe but with high acidity. Early harvest is decisive in creating this style. The exception are elevated, ventilated sites that can be harvested later at high acidity and moderate sugar levels. The best Kabinetts dance on tip-toe with weightless bodies that nonetheless burst with flavour. Young Kabinetts offer aromas that can range from herbal/floral (chervil, chamomile, yarrow, jasmine) via mineral (petrichor, wet pebble, slate) to a panoply of fruits – from green apple and pear via riper peach and apricot all the way to mango – always underlined by citrus notes, from lime to blood orange. Young Kabinetts are among the world’s most seductive Rieslings; mature Kabinetts are marvels of lightness with notions of herb tincture, dried citrus and stone. Kabinetts can be trocken (dry), feinherb (off-dry) or halbtrocken (medium-sweet). These range between 10-40g/l of sugar and 7-12.5% of alcohol. Some are fully sweet, at 50-80g/l of sweetness. The best examples come from the coolest regions, i.e. Mosel/Saar/Ruwer, Nahe and Rheingau and have wonderful elan and energy.

Spätlese is the Prädikat that often falls between two stools – with slightly more weight and ripeness, it is not as svelte and pirouetting as Kabinett, nor as concentrated as Auslese, but Spätlese offers immense elegance allied to subtle, contained sweetness. These wines are made from fully ripe, healthy Riesling grapes, perhaps with some over-ripeness. The serious practitioners of this discipline completely avoid botrytised grapes in a drive for clarity and luminosity. Spätlesen are visions of perfect, full ripeness and purity, running the gamut of white, yellow and orange fruits, always accented by vivid, aromatic citrus. While Spätlesen can be beguiling when young, they come into their own at around five years of bottle age as they begin their decade-long evolution. Spätlesen can be dry and off-dry, but they mostly clock in at around 20-90g/l of sweetness and 7-10% of alcohol. The best strike an impeccable balance and show restraint, brightness and contour afforded by brilliant acidity.

It is important to note that there are no upper ripeness levels for the Prädikate. In the past, when ‘more is more’ was the motto, this led to countless Spätlesen being labelled and sold as Kabinett – overly sweet and full-bodied – with Auslesen thus declared as Spätlesen, forsaking the quintessential elegance of both Kabinett and Spätlese. The pendulum has swung back with a German renaissance of light-footed Kabinett and exquisitely elegant, balanced Spätlesen – giving another reason, or Riesling, to be cheerful. The renowned JJ Prüm has always stuck to classic restraint, and as Katharina Prüm says: ‘We make Prädikatsweine, and sweetness should never be in the foreground. Off-dry is an important word in Spätlese. It is not a sweet wine but a gastronomic wine.’

Auslese – literally meaning ‘selection’ – is a selection of overripe, shrivelled and/or botrytised Riesling. Botrytis, also known as noble rot, is a fungus that befalls grapes and gradually concentrates them by drying them out. This means not only sugars but also acids and flavours are concentrated. It also adds specific notes of honey, saffron, wax and fungus to wines. Auslesen are concentrated wines that are almost always sweet – Auslese trocken is possible but by now the exception that proves the rule. Auslesen offer a complex array of flavours enhanced by full sweetness that usually ranges from 60-130g/l of sugar, but with commensurately concentrated acidity, and 7-10% of alcohol. Here, notions of honey, dried fruits, herb tincture and sweet spices become prevalent while citrus flavours can come across as candied. The recent dry and hot vintages of 2018, 2020 and 2022 largely produced brilliantly clear Auslesen from shrivelled and dried fruit only, as botrytis needs moisture to thrive. Auslesen are long-lived wines that can survive not only for decades but centuries, slowly attaining a balm-like quality

Beerenauslesen, often abbreviated to BA, are made from grapes that have been partially or fully dried by either shrivelling or botrytis. Their juice is so concentrated, they only ferment very slowly. BAs are always sweet and sometimes viscous, made so by the sheer amount of sugar, which often ranges from 150 to over 200g/l, with a minimum alcohol level of 5.5%. These Rieslings are no longer sweet but luscious. Honey, caramel, beeswax, dried and candied fruits and even marmalade come into play as flavours, heightened by sheer sweetness and delineated by sharp acidity that lends clarity and precision. Again, hot and dry vintages of late have meant a number of Beerenauslesen without any botrytis influence, lending purity. Beerenauslesen should not be drunk when young, not just because they age effortlessly for decades, but because their complexity needs to unfold with age. You can start enjoying BAs with around five years of bottle age, but 10, 15 or 20 will offer even more reward.

Trockenbeerenauslese, abbreviated to TBA, is the highest Prädikat, demanding real concentration from fully botrytised or almost completely shrivelled grapes. These wines are so bundled in sweetness, flavour and acidity that they often seem like essences of Riesling – no longer wine but elixirs. They almost always boast sugar levels of 180-250g/l and sometimes even more, with a minimum of 5.5% of alcohol and rarely more than 8.5%. They have incredibly intense aromatics on nose and palate and often beguile with incredible length, displaying a dizzying array of aromas, chiselled into precision by electric acidity. These are virtually indestructible wines that will age and evolve for centuries. Drink them with sufficient maturity so they have a chance to show their mettle – this evolution begins at around 10 years of bottle age and gets unreal when they have clocked up several decades.

The decision to designate a sweet wine as Auslese, Beerenauslese or Trockenbeerenauslese is not solely down to minimum ripeness levels but also style. A wine might reach a sufficient must-weight for a high Prädikat, but may still have more fresh than dried-fruit notions, in which case it will more likely be an Auslese, but carry the additional distinction of Goldkapsel, or golden capsule. This golden capsule appears on the bottle in place of the estate’s usual colour. Some estates top that with a longer golden capsule, known as lange Goldkapsel. Classification is also a matter of personal pride. Many a winemaker prefers to have a stonking BA over a middling TBA. In years which favour botrytis, many select Auslese, BA and TBA from the same grape bunches, leaving them with exquisitely delineated wines, as in 2023 for example. Naturally, quantities for Auslesen, BA and TBA are small, and since they are a vagary of nature, they are rare and expensive.

Eisweine can only be made when healthy grapes left on the vine freeze to a minimum of -7° Celsius. Leaving grapes on the vine in the hope that a frosty night will come and freeze them to the requisite temperature is naturally a high-risk venture – Eiswein is thus exceedingly rare. The same minimum must-weights and alcohol level as for TBA apply, but concentration here is from freezing, not shrivelling or botrytis. The grapes must be picked and pressed when frozen, often in the small hours of the morning. Since unaffected by botrytis, Eisweins shine with radiant purity and laser-like acidity. Most winemakers are convinced that the frost event should come before Christmas rather than after it, simply because the grapes will not remain pristine when left too long to the elements. Both 2021 and 2023 delivered stunning Eisweins. Just like TBAs, Eisweins live forever.