International Code of Oenological Practices

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Sweet wines with residual sugar derived from grapes

I.4.6 Sweet wines with residual sugar derived from grapes

Sweet wine with residual sugar derived from grapes is a wine with a content of fermentation residual sugars, glucose plus fructose, above or equal to 45g/l, and resulting exclusively from partial alcoholic fermentation of grapes or grape must for which the sugar content was obtained naturally, during the grape maturation, or may be obtained in accordance with provisions in 1.10 "Mastering sugar content from the harvest", notably raisining, selective sorting of grapes and cryoselection.

The actual alcoholic strength by volume of the wine must not be less than 4,5% alc. vol.

The potential alcoholic strength of the grapes before fermentation must not be less than 15% alc. vol