Total extract (dry extract) refers to all substances that occur dissolved in the wine and remain after distillation (evaporation) of the aqueous-alcoholic portion. The total of all minerals and trace elements is referred to as ash, the quantity of all acids as total acidity and the quantity of all sugars as residual sugar. Around 7,000 different substances have been identified in wine using metabolomics(a method of analysis).
This allows not only the ingredients present in a wine to be determined, but also the quality and origin, as well as any manipulation or wine adulteration that may have taken place. The calculation is carried out in grams per litre (g/l) to an accuracy of 10-1. The vast majority is still unknown. The 50 or so most common ones, together with their interaction, make up the composition or the very special quality of a wine.
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Hans-Georg Schwarz
Ehrenobmann der Domäne Wachau (Wachau)