''Liebfraumilch'' or ''Liebfrauenmilch'' (German for 'Our Lady's Milk', in reference to the

Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

) is a style of semi-sweet white German wine which may be produced, mostly for export, in the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

Rheinhessen Rhenish Hesse or Rhine HesseDickinson, Robert E (1964). ''Germany: A regional and economic geography'' (2nd ed.). London: Methuen, p. 542. . (, ) is a region and a former government district () in the States of Germany, German state of Rhineland ...

, Palatinate,

Rheingau The Rheingau (; ) is a region on the northern side of the Rhine between the German towns of Wiesbaden and Lorch, Hesse, Lorch near Frankfurt, reaching from the Western Taunus to the Rhine. It is situated in the German state of Hesse and is part ...

, and Nahe. The original German spelling of the word is , given to the wine produced from the vineyards of the '' Liebfrauenkirche'' or "Church of Our Lady" in the

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

city of

Worms The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

since the eighteenth century. The spelling ''Liebfraumilch'' is more common on labels of exported wine.Wein-Plus Glossar: ''Liebfrauenmilch''
Retrieved January 24, 2013 .

Classification

Back in the eighteenth century, it was said that the term "Liebfraumilch" should only be used if the grapes grew in the area “as far as the tower of the Liebfrauenkirche casts its shadow” but this rule was not anchored in law. This “genuine” Liebfraumilch is available as “Wormser Liebfrauenstift-Kirchenstück” from the winegrowers Gutzler, Schembs, Spohr and Valckenberg. The genuine Wormser Liebfrauenmilch and today's “Wormser Liebfrauenstift-Kirchenstück” have a smoky taste that originates from the wooden house debris from the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War was a European great power conflict from 1688 to 1697 between Kingdom of France, France and the Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg), Grand Alliance. Although largely concentrated in Europe, fighting spread to colonial poss ...

(1688-1697). In those days, the debris from the town was deposited around the Liebfrauenkirche and vineyards were planted on it. The generic label is typically used to market vintages from anywhere in most of the major wine growing areas of Germany, the notable exception being Mosel. Wine with very similar characteristics but made from higher quality grapes can be labeled as Spätlese or Auslese. In the US and the UK, perhaps the best known example has been Blue Nun, which no longer uses the designation. The term ''Liebfraumilch'' is associated with low quality wine, and, consequently, the German wine classification requires it only to be at the ''Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete'' (QbA) level—the third rank out of ten. However, it must also be from Rheinhessen, Pfalz, Nahe, or Rheingau, and the grapes must be at least 70%

Riesling Riesling ( , ) is a white grape variety that originated in the Rhine region. Riesling is an aromatic grape variety displaying flowery, almost perfumed, aromas as well as high acidity. It is used to make dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and sparkling ...

Silvaner Silvaner or Sylvaner () is a variety of white wine grape grown primarily in Alsace wine, Alsace and German wine, Germany, where its official name is Grüner Silvaner. While the Alsatian versions have primarily been considered simpler wines, it ...

, or Müller-Thurgau, and it must have

residual sugar The subjective sweetness of a wine is determined by the interaction of several factors, including the amount of sugar in the wine, but also the relative levels of alcohol, acids, and tannins. Sugars and alcohol enhance a wine's sweetness, while ...

. German wine is classified roughly into ten categories: ''Tafelwein'' (dining wine), ''Landwein'', QbA (as mentioned above), followed by QbP (with predicate), followed by ''Kabinett'', ''Spätlese'' (late harvest), ''Auslese'' (special selection), ''Beerenauslese'' (lit. berry selection), and ''Trockenbeerenauslese'' (dry berry selection). Somewhat apart sits the ''Eiswein'' (ice wine), which is generally understood to be at least on par with the ''Beerenauslese'', but helped with both Botryitis (as is the ''Beerenauslese'') in conjunction with natural cryo extraction (icewine grapes have to be processed at -7 °C). Overall, these quality levels are following extract per litre measures (density levels) as these are indicative of sugar levels. Blue Nun, as a result, sits at level 1 out of 8 and, despite its international success, is rarely considered in the domestic market.

In popular culture

When a rack of wine topples over in the 1932 Hollywood film '' Downstairs'', the wine cellar caretaker Otto ( Otto Hoffman) laments a broken bottle of , very likely to be a subtle joke. In ''The Unpleasantness at the Bellona Club'', in the chapter "The Curse if Scotland", Lord Peter has a bottle of Liebfraumilch with his lunch. In the book ''Desert Solitaire'', by

Edward Abbey Edward Paul Abbey (January 29, 1927 – March 14, 1989) was an American author and essayist noted for his advocacy of environmental issues, criticism of public land policies, and anarchist political views. His best-known works include the nov ...

, the author stops at a liquor store to purchase a bottle of liebfraumilch on his way to Mount Tukuhnikivatz. In the episode of ''

Only Fools and Horses ''Only Fools and Horses'' (titled onscreen as ''Only Fools and Horses....'') is a British television sitcom that was created and written by John Sullivan (writer), John Sullivan. Seven series were originally broadcast on BBC One in the United Ki ...

'', "Dates", Del Boy mentions to the matchmaker that he would like a "refined" woman that can tell the difference between "Liebfraumilch and a can of Tizer". “…Soon she did return with a bottle of liebframilch…” in the song lyrics of "Spill the Wine" by Eric Burdon and War (live video version, 1970. Note that various words throughout the live video version song differ from the original recorded version). In the book '' Confessions of Felix Krull'' by

Thomas Mann Paul Thomas Mann ( , ; ; 6 June 1875 – 12 August 1955) was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and the 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate. His highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novell ...

, the priest of the main character which described as a man who loves life, drinks Liebfraumilch with a portion of Fines Herbs omelet for breakfast.

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist known for his distinctive and powerful voice, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. Orbison's most successful periods were ...

had a "one bottle Black-Label Liebfrauenmilch" on his tour rider in the 1980s.

References

External links

Valckenberg company history
{{Authority control German wine German words and phrases