Auslese is a German language

German language

German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....

 wine term for a late harvest wine

Late harvest wine

Late harvest is a term applied to wines made from grapes left on the vine longer than usual. Late harvest is usually an indication of a sweet dessert wine, such as late harvest Riesling. Late harvest grapes are often more similar to raisins, but have been naturally dehydrated while on the vine...

 and is a riper category than Spätlese

Spätlese

Spätlese is a German wine term for a wine from fully ripe grapes, the lightest of the late harvest wines. Spätlese is a riper category than Kabinett in the Prädikatswein category of the German wine classification and is the lowest level of Prädikatswein in Austria, where Kabinett is classified in...

 in the Prädikatswein category of the Austrian

Austrian wine

Austrian wines are mostly dry white wines with some luscious dessert wines made around the Neusiedler See. About 30% of the wines are red, made from Blaufränkisch , Pinot Noir and locally bred varieties such as Zweigelt...

 and German wine classification

German wine classification

German wine classification consists of several quality categories and is often the source of some confusion, especially among non-German speaking wine consumers. The official classification is set down in the wine law of 1971, although some changes and amendments have been made since then...

. The grapes are picked from selected very ripe bunches in the autumn (late November-early December), and have to be hand picked. Generally Auslese wine can be made in only the best harvest years that have been sufficiently warm. A small proportion of the grapes may be affected by noble rot

Noble rot

Noble rot is the benevolent form of a grey fungus, Botrytis cinerea, affecting wine grapes. Infestation by Botrytis requires moist conditions, and if the weather stays wet, the malevolent form, "grey rot", can destroy crops of grapes...

 in some regions although this never dominates the character of the wine. Rheingau

Rheingau

The Rheingau is the hill country on the north side of the Rhine River between Wiesbaden and Lorch near Frankfurt, reaching from the western Taunus to the Rhine. It lies in the state of Hesse and is part of the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis administrative district...

 winemaker Schloss Johannisberg

Schloss Johannisberg

Schloss Johannisberg is a winery in the Rheingau wine-growing region in Germany, that has been making wine for over 900 years. The winery is most noted for its claim to have "discovered" late harvest wine.- History :...

 is generally credited with discovering Auslese wine in 1787.

Auslesen are sometimes considered a German dessert wine

Dessert wine

Dessert wines are sweet wines typically served with dessert.There is no simple definition of a dessert wine. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a meal, as opposed to the white fortified wines drunk before the meal, and the red fortified wines drunk after it...

, especially the wines made from botrytis

Botrytis

Botrytis may refer to:*Botrytis, the anamorphs of fungi of the genus Botryotinia**Botrytis cinerea, a mold important in wine making*Botrytis, the cauliflower cultivar group of Brassica oleracea...

 infected bunches, though it is not as sweet as Eiswein, Beerenauslese

Beerenauslese

Beerenauslese is a German language wine term for a dessert wine-style late harvest wine. Beerenauslese is a category in the Prädikatswein category of the Austrian and German wine classifications, and is a category above Auslese. Beerenauslese wines, often called "BA" for short, are usually made...

 (BA), or Trockenbeerenauslese

Trockenbeerenauslese

Trockenbeerenauslese is a German language wine term for an intensely sweet dessert wine-style wine....

 (TBA) dessert wines.

Auslesen can be enjoyed by themselves (aperitif - an “afternoon wine“) but are usually best accompanied with food, particularly those that exhibit the hearty characteristics of German cuisine.

The term in Alsace

Alsace wine

Alsace wine or Alsatian wine is produced in the Alsace region in France and is primarily white. These wines, which for historical reasons have a strong Germanic influence, are produced under three different Appellations d'Origine Contrôlées : Alsace AOC for white, rosé and red wines, Alsace Grand...

 most closely corresponding to Auslese in terms of must weight requirements is Vendange tardive

Vendange tardive

Vendange tardive means "late harvest" in French. The phrase refers to a style of dessert wine where the grapes are allowed to hang on the vine until they start to dehydrate. This process, called passerillage, concentrates the sugars in the juice and changes the flavours within it...

, even though this French term is linguistically equivalent to the German term Spätlese.

Requirements

The minimum must weight

Must weight

Must weight is a measure of the amount of sugar in grape juice , and hence indicates the amount of alcohol that could be produced if it is all fermented to alcohol, rather than left as residual sugar...

 requirements for Auslese is as follows:

• In German wine, 83 to 100 degrees Oechsle, depending on the region (wine growing zone
  European Union wine growing zones
  The European Union wine growing zones is a tool used in the common European Union wine regulations to regulate certain aspects of winemaking. The zones differ in terms of climate and examples of what is regulated by wine growing zone are required grape maturity at harvest and allowed levels of...
  
  ) and grape variety.
• In Austrian wine, 21 degrees KMW, corresponding to 105 °Oechsle.

Chaptalisation may not be used. The requirements are part of the wine law

Wine law

Wine laws are legislation regulating various aspects of production and sales of wine. The purpose of wine laws includes combating wine fraud, by means of regulated protected designations of origin, labelling practices and classification of wine, as well as regulating allowed additives and...

 in both countries. Many producers, especially top-level producers, exceed the minimum requirements by a wide margin, resulting in richer and sweeter Auslesen that may even exceed the minimum requirements for Beerenauslese

Beerenauslese

Beerenauslese is a German language wine term for a dessert wine-style late harvest wine. Beerenauslese is a category in the Prädikatswein category of the Austrian and German wine classifications, and is a category above Auslese. Beerenauslese wines, often called "BA" for short, are usually made...

, the next Prädikat in order. In Germany, it is common to add stars (usually * to ***) on the wine label, Fuder (vat) numbers or a golden capsule, to indicate this.

Dry Auslese

The wines are occasionally made dry (trocken

Trocken

Trocken is German for dry, and is used in the classification of German wine. On a wine label, it indicates a wine that is dry rather than off-dry , sweeter or sweet . Technically, trocken wines are not devoid of residual sugar, but have, at most, a few grams per liter, which can be perceptible but...

) in some areas, such as Palatinate

Palatinate (wine region)

Palatinate is a German wine-growing region in the area of Bad Dürkheim, Neustadt an der Weinstraße, and Landau in Rhineland-Palatinate. Before 1993, it was known as Rhine Palatinate . With under cultivation in 2008, the region is the second largest wine region in Germany after Rheinhessen...

 (Pfalz) but are more typically sweeter, as the very high alcohol

Alcohol

In chemistry, an alcohol is an organic compound in which the hydroxy functional group is bound to a carbon atom. In particular, this carbon center should be saturated, having single bonds to three other atoms....

 levels (around 13-14%) in dry examples can make them unbalanced particularly when young. The typical must

Must

Must is freshly pressed fruit juice that contains the skins, seeds, and stems of the fruit. The solid portion of the must is called pomace; it typically makes up 7%–23% of the total weight of the must. Making must is the first step in winemaking...

 weight for an Auslese is 90° Oechsle. These wines, particularly when made from the riesling

Riesling

Riesling is a white grape variety which originated in the Rhine region of Germany. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet and sparkling white wines. Riesling wines are usually varietally...

 grape can age for very long periods of time, often ten years or more.

With the recent introduction of the new classifications of top dry German wines, Erstes Gewächs and Grosses Gewächs, the Verband Deutscher Prädikats- und Qualitätsweingüter

Verband Deutscher Prädikats- und Qualitätsweingüter

Verband Deutscher Prädikats- und Qualitätsweingüter e.V. or the Association of German Prädikat Wine Estates, is an organisation where most of Germany's top wine producers are members. It is commonly known under its acronym VDP...

 (VDP) has discouraged the continued use of Auslese trocken, as it has been seen as confusing for the consumer to have sweet and powerful dry wines with the same Prädikat. However a significant number of VDP members are still using the Prädikat classification on dry Wines, since the Prädikat only is dedicated to the quality level of the picked grapes and not the taste.

Red Wine Auslese

As German Wine makers try to carve out a niche in developing red wine, the Auslese ripeness classification has come into play as the ideal level to produce Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir

Pinot noir is a black wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines created predominantly from Pinot noir grapes...

), particularly in the Rheingau, Pfalz, and Baden

Baden

Baden is a historical state on the east bank of the Rhine in the southwest of Germany, now the western part of the Baden-Württemberg of Germany....

 regions. Winemakers are experimenting with grapes at Auslese level ripeness with Burgundian style production methods involving oak and a higher extraction of tannin levels.

These wines are also increasingly labelled Erstes Gewächs and Grosses Gewächs rather than Auslese.