Icewine is a sweet wine made from grapes that froze solid on the vine and were picked and pressed while still frozen. The water in the grape stays behind as ice, so what drips out of the press is a tiny amount of intensely sweet, intensely acidic juice. In Canada the grapes must be picked at minus 8°C or colder; in Germany, where it is called Eiswein, the rule is minus 7°C.
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How it is made
The grapes are left on the vine long after the normal harvest, into November, December or January in the northern hemisphere, protected by nets from the birds. Then the growers wait for a cold snap. When the forecast hits the legal temperature, usually in the middle of the night, everyone is called in to pick by hand before the sun softens the fruit.
The frozen grapes go straight into the press. Because the water is locked up as ice crystals, only the concentrated sugar, acid and flavour compounds come out. A tonne of grapes that would give 700 litres of normal wine gives perhaps 100 to 150 litres of icewine, and often less. Fermentation is slow and difficult because the yeast is fighting so much sugar; it can take months and usually stops on its own with plenty of sweetness left.
Canada requires a minimum of 35 Brix (a measure of sugar) in the pressed juice, and Germany sets a similar bar in its own units. Freezing grapes in a freezer after picking is banned in Canada, Germany, Austria and the United States for anything labelled icewine; wines made that way have to be called something else.
Why it costs so much
Yield, risk and labour. You get a fraction of the juice, you gamble the whole crop on a frost that might not come or might come after the grapes have rotted, and you pay a crew to pick at two in the morning in a snowstorm. That is why icewine is sold in half bottles (375 ml) or 200 ml bottles, and why a half bottle from a good Canadian producer costs what a full bottle of decent Champagne does.
Where it comes from
Canada is the largest producer by volume, making more than every other country combined, and the Niagara Peninsula in Ontario is the centre of it. The Okanagan Valley in British Columbia is the other Canadian region. Inniskillin, Peller Estates and Jackson-Triggs are the names you are most likely to see exported.
Germany and Austria invented the style (a happy accident in Franconia in the 1790s is the usual story) and still make small amounts of Eiswein in cold years, almost always from Riesling. Climate change is making those years rarer. Small quantities are also made in the northern United States, China and, oddly, Japan.
What it tastes like
| Grape | Tastes of | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Riesling | Apricot, peach, lime, honey, with electric acidity | The purist’s choice; ages for decades |
| Vidal | Pineapple, mango, honey, softer and rounder | The classic Canadian style; the friendliest first bottle |
| Cabernet Franc | Strawberry, raspberry, red cherry, a pink wine | With chocolate or berry desserts |
What surprises people is the acidity. A wine with this much sugar should be cloying, but the frozen grapes concentrate the acid just as much, so the finish is clean and you want another sip. It is closer to a squeeze of lime over a mango than to golden syrup.
How to serve it
Cold, around 10°C, in a small glass, in small pours; 60 ml is a serve. It is a dessert on its own, and the classic pairings are things that are less sweet than the wine: crème brûlée, a fruit tart, a plain cheesecake, blue cheese, foie gras, or a spicy Thai dish where the sugar tames the chilli. Do not serve it with a dessert sweeter than itself, or the wine tastes sour by comparison. Once open, it keeps for a week or two in the fridge.
The Australian angle
Australia does not make true icewine. No wine region here gets reliably cold enough on the vine, and freezing the grapes afterwards does not count. What we make instead are the other great sweet styles: botrytis Semillon from the Riverina (De Bortoli’s Noble One is the benchmark), late-harvest and botrytis Riesling from the Clare and Eden valleys, and the fortified Muscats and Topaques of Rutherglen. If you like icewine, you will like all three, and they cost less.
For the real thing, Canadian icewine from Inniskillin and Peller turns up in Australian bottle shops with a decent dessert wine shelf, usually in the 375 ml size. Our guide to residual sugar in wine explains how icewine’s sugar compares with other sweet wines.
Frequently asked questions
Is icewine the same as ice wine or Eiswein?
Yes. Icewine as one word is the protected Canadian term, ice wine is the general English name, and Eiswein is the German and Austrian name. Same method, same idea.
How cold does it have to be?
Minus 8°C or colder in Canada, minus 7°C or colder in Germany, measured when the grapes are picked and pressed.
How strong is it?
Usually 9 to 12% alcohol. The yeast gives up before it can turn all that sugar into alcohol, which is why so much sweetness is left.
How long does it keep?
Unopened, years; Riesling icewine can go for decades. Opened, one to two weeks in the fridge with the cap on.
Why is it sold in small bottles?
Because it takes so many grapes to make so little wine, and because 60 ml is a serve. A half bottle is six glasses.
