Late harvest wine

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A late harvest Semillon from Washington State.

Late harvest wine is wine made from

raisins
, but have been naturally dehydrated while on the vine.

Botrytis cinerea, or noble rot, is a mold that causes grapes to lose nearly all of their water content. Wines made from botrytis-affected grapes are generally very sweet.

Noble rot

Botrytis affected grapes

Botrytis cinerea is a

germinate, causing the water inside to evaporate and the grape to dehydrate. With the absence of water, the sugar becomes more concentrated and the botrytis begins to alter the acidity within the grape. Typically botrytis infection begins to take place in late September and can last till late October. In some years desiccation may occur leaving tiny amount of sweet liquor like juice within the grape.[1]

The infection rate of botrytis is sporadic with vines and bunches achieving full rottenness at different times. This requires harvest workers to go through the vineyards several times between October and November to hand-pick the full rotted grapes. In some occasions, the usable grapes from a single vine may only produce enough juice for a single glass.[2]

Sauternes

Semillon and Sauvignon blanc grapes. Semillon is preferred due to the grape's thin skin and susceptibility to the botrytis which gives the grape a high sugar content. These wines are noted for the balance that complements the honeyed sweetness.[1]

During

residual sugar at levels between 8 and 12% and alcohol levels around 14%.[2]

After fermentation, the wine is placed in an

bottle age for over 30 years though they normally hit their peak 10 years after the vintage date.[3]

Tokaji/Tokaj/Tokajské

Tokaji wine cellars

Tokaji wines are produced in the

Muscat, and Hárslevelű/Lipovina grapes are the primary grapes used in this wine. In a manner similar to Sherry, the wine is aged in partially filled barrels with a film of yeast on top and stored underground in wine caverns.[4]

German late harvest wines

In

Qualitätswein mit Prädikat classification, there are four levels of late harvest wines, roughly ranging from dry to very sweet: Spätlese ("late harvest"), Auslese ("selected harvest"), Beerenauslese ("selected berries harvest") and Trockenbeerenauslese ("selected dried-berries harvest") with the last two levels being botrytized.[5]

Icewine

Grapes frozen on the vine

Ice wines are popular in the cold northernly wine regions of Germany and

pressed, the frozen water crystals [6] are eliminated leaving the highly concentrated sugar behind.[7]

Raisin wine

Raisin wines are sometimes made from grapes that have been left on the vine in the sun to concentrate their sugar. The result is similar to that of the ice wine process, but is a much older process and suitable for warm climates.

References