Country wine

Landwein has been the name of the second of three quality levels in European viticulture since the EU wine law amendment No. 491/2009 of August 1, 2009 . For wines of this quality class, the vintage and selected grape varieties may also be indicated on the label. The quality requirements are lower than those of wines with a protected designation of origin ( quality wine ), but higher than for wines without an indication of origin (the earlier table wine ).

Germany

German country wine is one of the wines with a protected designation of origin and designates wine of the second lowest quality level after table wine . The minimum must weights are therefore at least 0.5% alcohol by volume higher, which corresponds to 3 ° Oechsle . Since 1982 there has been the designation Landwein in Germany as a quality level for a region-typical dry or semi-dry table wine of higher quality . At least 85% of German country wine must be made from grapes that come from the country wine region whose name the wine bears. Its must may be enriched with sugar before fermentation ( chaptalisation ). In other countries there are similar names for domestic wines, such as Vin de Pays in France. Country wine does not necessarily have to be of inferior quality than a QbA (quality wine for a specific growing area). The state government of Rhineland-Palatinate only allows a maximum yield of 10,500 liters of must per hectare for QbA wines in the Nahe, Rheinhessen and Pfalz growing areas, for country wine it is 15,000 liters per hectare and for basic wine 20,000 liters per hectare (group model ). In contrast, in the Württemberg cultivation area, a maximum yield of 11,000 liters per hectare is permitted for all types of wine and 15,000 liters per hectare in steep slopes (one-value model). H. v. 20% possible to e.g. B. Compensate for lower yields in subsequent years (§ 10 Wine Act). Many German winemakers in whose cultivation area the group model is used therefore market wines as country wines, even though they meet the quality criteria for QbA or even Kabinett. The only alternative to marketing country wine is destruction (dumping of the grapes on agricultural land), leaving the grapes hanging on the vine or distillation, whereby the alcohol obtained may only be used for industrial purposes (Section 11 Wine Act).

According to § 22 Wine Act, country wine must meet the following criteria:

The designation of a wine as country wine presupposes that

at least 85 per cent of the grapes used for winemaking come from the rural wine region whose name the wine bears; the remaining portions, including the products used for sweetening, may only be made from grapes that come from other rural wine regions,
a concentration by cold has not been carried out,
the bottler has been included in the system of annual controls for compliance with the product specifications for local wines by the body responsible under state law.

The Federal Ministry for food, agriculture and consumer protection is authorized by ordinance with the consent of the Federal Council

To enact regulations on the sweetening and residual sugar content of country wine,
determine the conditions under which the production of a country wine outside the country wine region is permitted.

The state governments can regulate by ordinance:

the lists of the grape varieties of the species Vitis vinifera or a cross between Vitis vinifera and another species of the genus vitis suitable for the production of country wine,
the natural minimum alcoholic strength of the country wines, taking into account the value applicable to quality wine from the same geographic area,
the procedure of annual control of the product specifications of the country wines.

Since August 1, 2009, the following 26 country wine regions have been established in Germany:

Austria

According to the Austrian Wine Act 2009, the country wine belongs to the group of wines with a protected geographical indication (PGI) and must comply with the following information:

Country wine (at least 14 ° KMW = 68 ° Oe)

100% of the grapes must come from the wine-growing region.

Country wine must be on the label .

Must be made exclusively from quality grape varieties.

Minimum must weight of the grapes 14 ° KMW.

The wine must have the character typical of the name.

Total acidity of at least 4 g per liter

Maximum hectare yield 9000 kg (or 6750 l wine / ha)

Must be free from defects in appearance and odor.

Alcohol increase / fortification

Alcohol increase / enrichment maximum enrichment range 2.0% vol
Total alcohol after enrichment: white wine 13.5% vol, red wine 14.5% vol

France

French country wine is known as Vin de Pays .

Italy

In Italy, country wine is called Vino tipico, see Indicazione Geografica Tipica .

Switzerland

Swiss country wines are for example the Walliser Goron and the Walliser Rosé de Goron .

Individual evidence

↑ VO (PDF) No. 491/2009.

^ Wine Act in the version published on January 18, 2011 ( Federal Law Gazette I p. 66 ): Section 4, Section 22, Paragraph 1, last accessed on May 13, 2011.

↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original from October 28, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. @1@ 2
↑ http://www.deutscheweine.de/wissen/qualitaet-standards/gueteklassen/
↑ Federal Law Gazette I No. 111/2009 : Federal Law on the Trade in Wine and Fruit Wine (Wine Law 2009).

↑ Martin Raggam: new wine law at a glance. In: The winemaker. 11/2009 p. 88.

↑ The common name wine g. A. is not a sales description and must not be listed on the label.

↑ Articles 40 and 61 of the (PDF) Ordinance on Viticulture and Wine (VRW, 916.142) , Sion March 17, 2004.

[1] VO (PDF) No. 491/2009.

[2] Wine Act in the version published on January 18, 2011 ( Federal Law Gazette I p. 66 ): Section 4, Section 22, Paragraph 1, last accessed on May 13, 2011.