Designation used in many countries for a special type of winemaking or for a particular style of wine, but which has no EU-wide significance. Basically, it means that a wine has been produced "in the old and traditional way", which can be quite different depending on the wine-growing country and wine-growing region.
Quality designation Germany
In Germany, the new quality designation "Classic" was introduced with the 2000 vintage. The initiative was taken by the German Winegrowers' Association and supported by the DWI (German Wine Institute). The designation applies to dry wines of superior quality typical of the region (quality wines and Prädikat wines). The wine must be made from a classic grape variety typical of the region, whereby certain varieties (2 to 9) are permitted, depending on the growing region. The varieties Riesling, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Noir are defined in (almost) all of them. The respective grape variety may appear on the label; in Württemberg, "Trollinger with Lemberger" is also permitted.
The wine must meet a high standard and taste full-bodied, strong and aromatic, and correspond to the taste profile "harmoniously dry". However, the indication " dry " does not appear on the bottle label. The vintage and growing region are obligatory. However, more detailed information such as single vineyard, Großlage or range is not permitted. The alcohol content must be at least 12% vol., in the Mosel growing region 11.5% vol. The maximum permissible residual sugar is acidity times 2 or a maximum of 15 g/l. See also under the quality designation Selection, which is similar in terms of conditions, and also under VDP Classification (Association of German Prädikat Wine Estates).
Quality designation Austria
In Austria, "Classic", "Klassik", "klassischer Ausbau" and similar are used to describe a wine style. As a rule, this applies to a fruity and freshly vinified wine with a light to medium alcohol content that has not been aged in barriques but "classically" in steel tanks or large wooden barrels and bottled young. The use of this designation on the label may only be used for quality vintage wines with the best recognisable characteristics with regard to their varietal character and origin, as is the case, for example, with some DAC areas. The provision that information on the selection criteria must be included on the label was eliminated in 2018. However, this designation is not permitted for Prädikat wines. Similar quality level designations exist at the Kamptal Klassik (Lower Austria), Steirische Terroir & Klassikweingüter (Styria) and Vienna Classic (Vienna) winegrowers ' associations.
