Ice Wine Is Made From Frozen Grapes, Dessert Is A Bottle!

Mmmmm ice wine. It's dessert in a bottle, sweet and tasty. My Grandmother never liked regular wine, but she did love this kind of wine...she had a sweet tooth. My daughter Alisha doesn't like regular wine either, maybe she'll be like her Great Grandma and like the "Eiswein" too.

Here are some Frequently Asked Questions about this tasty alcoholic beverage:

Where was it invented?

Most of us would guess that any special wine variety originated in countries such as France, Italy, or even Portugal. Well, we'd be wrong. Germany produced the first ice-wine, or "Eiswein," in 1794.

How is it produced?

The secret is in the frozen grapes that manufactures use to produce it. But wait-there's more! If you toss the grapes into a freezer or put them in an igloo, you can't technically classify the drink you've produced as Eiswein.

Instead, winemakers pluck the grapes from vines early in the morning, soon after the first frost of the year has struck. I would like to experience harvesting these grapes just once. They are picked by hand at their peak.

They have to be perfect in order for the winery to make the phone call and have all the workers out picking. I hear it is quite often done in the wee hours of the morning because of the temperatures. 2am-4am I'd like to participate just once to see how it all works, so if you own a winery and need an extra picker, contact me. Seriously, I'd love to do it (just once though)

Failing to do that would result in an inferior quality beverage. This is why it is so expensive, the grapes have to be picked at precisely the right time. Handpicked, I've always wanted to take part in harvesting grapes for this kind of vino...well maybe I will one day.

Living here in British Columbia it is entirely possible I might, and if I do you can be sure I'll post my experiences and pictures too. :-) Here in British Columbia up in the Okanagan we have perfect conditions to grow grapes like this.

How was it invented?

While Germans definitely produced the first ice wine in the late 1700s, historians aren't 100% certain about how they invented it. One theory is that a German vineyard owner harvested his wine grapes late in the year, due to his being out of town during the harvest season. There's an old saying, "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade." Well, the German winemaker supposedly decided to use his frozen grapes to make wine. So a new beverage was born.

How is it produced?

The process is much like producing standard wine, though there are a few twists. After harvesting the grapes, the winemakers then press them to remove the tiny pieces of ice in the grapes. What remains is highly condensed juice high in sugar and acid, which gives the ice wine its robust flavor. Next, the winemakers store the cold wine in special wooden barrels, where it will ferment for many months. ice wine grapes Where is it produced?

Like standard wine, several countries produce ice wine. Some of the top producing countries include Austria, Canada, and Germany. An important characteristic of these countries is that the weather becomes cold enough for the grapes to freeze naturally. Other countries use a process called "cryoextraction" (translation: mechanical freezing). Because this process isn't 100% natural, the industry often refers to these beverages as "icebox wines." As is typically the case in the food and beverage industry, the process of freezing the grapes via mechanical means is inferior to Mother Nature's method.

You can probably deduce that a desert region isn't ideal for producing cold wine. But a country's having a winter season doesn't necessarily qualify it for producing the right grapes for the beverage. An area must be cold. But it should also be cool or cold throughout the year. A long summer can end the chance of producing the right grapes for ice-wine. Sitting on the vine to long waiting for frost the grapes can start to spoil by over-ripening.

How do you drink ice-wine?

Typically people serve a small amount of the beverage as a dessert, and after a sizable meal. It's important to keep the beverage chilled before you serve it, to maximize the enjoyment that you experience. While you can serve the cold wine along with a dessert, it's crucial that the dessert complement the wine's flavor well.

If you want to enjoy a new and exciting type of wine, then consider ice wine. After trying it, you'll probably conclude that the long manufacturing process is certainly worthwhile. And the price, it is a little expensive, but it's usually a cute little bottle it comes in! :-)

Cheers

white wine

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