Friday, February 8, 2008

Wine Word of the Week: Brix

One of the more fabulous wine-related terms (pronounced like “bricks”) brix quantifies the sugar levels in wine grapes. Grapes must be harvested at the ideal sugar levels in order for proper fermentation during the winemaking process.
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2 comments:

Lindsey said...

Is brix a term that would be used when referring to ice wines that have a higher content of sugar? Would it be appropriate to use brix as a measurement, such as ice wine have high brix/brixes?

February 12, 2008 at 6:43 PM
YoungVintage said...

Yes and no. The term brix typically refers to the sugar content of the grapes before pressing and fermentation. So, for a dessert or ice wine, you would want to refer to the RS, or residual sugar, in the wine to describe sweetness. RS levels will depend upon when the winemaker stops the fermentation process, thus leaving sugars in the wine.

As always, an excellent question. Thank you!

February 12, 2008 at 7:43 PM

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