What is Beerenauslese?

Beerenauslese is a delicious intense full sweet wine with a beautiful clear straw yellow color. Beerenauslese is made from overripe grapes that have been affected by botrytis cinerea (noble rot). This fungus mainly strikes in morning mist in combination with very specific climatic (warm) conditions. The fungus ensures that the skin of the grape becomes porous, allowing moisture to evaporate from the grape. This process increases the sugar content and intensifies the aromas. After pressing these grapes, a beautiful syrupy and sweet juice remains. Not all sugars in the must ferment into alcohol during the process, which gives the wine a pleasantly high sugar content. In addition, Beerenauslese has a high concentration of minerals and aromas.

It seems like an easy process. However, it is not. Not every year, large quantities of beerenauslese can be produced. The optimal climatic conditions for this fungus occur on average only once every 5 to 7 years. The risks for the winegrower are therefore great. In addition, it is a laborious process because the bunches are harvested in multiple picking rounds. Beerenauslese literally means: 'Selecting berries/grapes'.
Nevertheless, Beerenauslese is very popular among lovers of dessert wine. Due to this high demand, prices are often quite high, which is why certain winegrowers reserve a small part of their vineyard each year for the production of Beerenauslese. Due to the limited amount that is produced, Beerenauslese is often filled in bottles of 375ml to 500ml at the latest.

If you manage to make Beerenauslese in a particular year, you will have a wonderful dessert wine that goes superbly with desserts made from various types of cheese, cakes, fruit and some even with chocolate.

Beerenauslese is a powerful wine that can be stored for many decades under good storage conditions.

View our collection of beerenauslese here .