Ice Wines - Great for Dessert

If you would like a real treat, try ice wines.

What are Ice Wines?

First made in Franconia, now part of Germany, in 1794, ice wines are a delightful dessert wine that is made from frozen grapes.  While some producers make a variation of ice wine from grapes that are artificially frozen, true ice wines are made from grapes that are naturally frozen on the vine.

Because grapes that can be frozen on the vine can only be grown in areas where the temperature drops below freezing and because it is difficult to predict whether grapes will be able to freeze from season to season, the production of ice wines is unpredictable.  Combined with the facts that the yield on grapes for ice wine is only 10% of “normal” yield and the grapes must be hand picked, sometimes in the dead of night so that the grapes remain frozen, you can expect ice wines to be expensive.

Ice Wine Producers

The most famous ice wines are made in Germany, where ice wine is called Eiswein.  The largest ice wine producer in the world today, however, is the Pilliterri Estate Winery in Canada.  Ice wine is also made in Austria, New Zealand, Australia, Hungary, and the United States.

Ice Wine Production

Ice wine production, by law, must freeze at a minimum of 17º F in Canada and a minimum of 19º F in Germany.  Freezing grapes is a risky business. The lower temperature at which the grapes freeze, the higher the sugar content of the grapes will be.  The goal is to get a minimum sugar content of 35%, which occurs at about 17º F.  Of course, ice wine producers want to push that sugar content beyond 35%.  However, if the grapes are too frozen, producers may not be able to extract any juice at all.

What do you get when you press frozen grapes?  You will get a very, very small amount of juice and a very high level of sugars with the vast majority consisting of frozen water.  When pressed, the frozen water is forced out of the mix.

Ice wines take much longer to ferment than other types of wines, sometimes taking up to several months.  After fermentation, ice wines are aged in barrels.  The result is a wine that is sweet, but balanced by acidity.  Ice wines are also more viscous, or “thicker,” than other types of wines.

Ice Wine Varietals

What types of grapes are used in making ice wines?  Ice wines produced in Germany are likely to have been made using Riesling grapes, while ice wines produced in Canada are made from Vidal Blanc grapes or Cabernet Franc grapes, which are red skinned.

Ice Wine Food Pairings

If you choose, you can pair ice wines with foods.  Traditionally, ice wine food pairings have been served after dinner with cheeses such as aged cheddar, mascarpone, or brie. Ice wines also work well with fruits for desserts.  For example, you might pair Vidal Blanc ice wines with peaches, or papaya.  Riesling ice wines work well with citrus or honeydew melon.  For those of you who love chocolate, hold on.  Cabernet Franc ice wines complement not only strawberries, raspberries, and blue berries, Cabernet Franc ice wines complement dark chocolate.

~Laura Evans Staff Editor

Laura Evans is a freelance writer living in Southern California.