Quality wine inspection
During the quality wine test, the authorities carry out analytical and sensory tests to determine whether a wine can be designated as a quality wine .
History and legal basis
Since the harmonization of wine law in the then EEC in 1971, it has been EU-wide that a sensory and analytical test must be carried out for wines that claim the designation quality wine or the corresponding designations in the other member states. The first wines tested were those from the 1971 vintage. While Germany has introduced compulsory testing, most of the other member states have opted for random tests. In Germany, it is the responsibility of the federal states to conduct the test.
Procedure in Germany
Request
The manufacturer or bottler of the wine must apply for the quality wine test to be carried out at the state authority in whose area of responsibility the grapes for the wine were harvested. A chemical analysis and a sample of the wine must be attached to the application.
Course of the exam
The exam takes place in three sections
- The analytical test controls compliance with certain analytical limit values such as B. Minimum alcohol content.
- With the origin check based on the entries in the autumn and cellar book as well as the harvest report from the producer, the origin of the wine is assigned according to location, vintage and quality
- The test of the senses is carried out by a committee in a hidden test . This examination commission is usually composed of four (at least three) tasters who come from the wine industry, viticulture advice, administration and the group of consumers. First of all, the correct color, clarity and typicality with regard to grape variety and region are checked as necessary conditions. In the sensory examination of the three criteria of smell, taste and harmony, the wine must continue to receive a satisfactory evaluation by the commission in order to be allowed to be considered a quality wine. Each individual examiner receives a test sheet on which the respective tasting results are noted. The assessment is based on the 5-point system.
Points are awarded in steps of 0.5, with the minimum number of points for each individual criterion being 1.5 and a maximum of 5 points. If the wine is defective in smell and / or taste, the corresponding criterion receives 0 points. In this case, the error complained about must be entered in the comments section. An award of 0 points means that the respective examiner rejects the wine.
Each examiner then adds the individual points to a total number of points. This divided by the number three (smell, taste, harmony) gives the quality number. The for an allocation of the APNr. the minimum number required is 1.5 points.
If a wine is rejected, the applicant can lodge an objection and has the option of re-employment.
Exam number
The issue of the official test number , which clearly identifies the wine, documents the successful passing of the quality wine test.
The structure of the official examination number
The first digit identifies the test center that gives the wine the AP no. has allocated. The next three numbers represent the bottler's community. This is followed by the company number of the bottler. The next two numbers indicate the filling of a company as a consecutive number. The last two digits indicate the year the wine was bottled. For example, the number 01 indicates the year 2001.
Different structure of the official test number in the specific Franconian growing area
Check number format: XXXX-YYY-JJ
The first four digits (XXXX) are the company number of the respective winery. The following three digits (YYY) are the consecutive number of the exam position. So 001 for the first employment of the year, 002 for the second ... The last two digits indicate the year of employment, i.e. 14 for the year 2014. This has nothing to do with the year of birth.
Example: APNr. 4352-003-14
This wine was employed by the Franconian winery with the company number 4352 in 2014 as the third wine.