This represents a further 1% increase compared with the previous year. In 2020, the proportion of dry wines stood at 48 per cent, and in 2010 at just 40 per cent.

Sparkling wines are also becoming drier

The trend towards less sweetness is also evident in sparkling wines. Last year, 54 per cent of quality-certified sparkling wines fell into the ‘brut’ to ‘brut nature’ categories. In 2020, the figure was still 50 per cent.

Semi-sweet wines are losing ground

The steady growth in dry wines is offset by a corresponding decline in ‘lieblich’ and sweet wines in the quality wine certification scheme. Compared with the previous year, the decline in this flavour category was one percentage point; compared with 2010, it was eight percentage points.

Semi-dry wines remain relatively stable

The range of semi-dry wines has fallen only slightly by four percentage points since 2010 and, at 19 per cent, remained unchanged compared with 2024.

White and rosé show a slight increase

In terms of wine colours, the quantities of quality-certified wine shifted only slightly towards white wine and rosé last year. White wines dominate the German range of quality and Prädikat wines, accounting for 70 per cent; red wines account for 17 per cent and rosé wines for 13 per cent. In 2010, the proportion of red wine was still almost twice as high at 33 per cent. From the DWI’s perspective, this development underlines the general consumer trend towards white and rosé wine.

Fewer wines tested

In total, around 6.2 million hectolitres of wine successfully passed the quality wine test in 2025, seven per cent less than in the previous year. The DWI attributes this, amongst other things, to the comparatively small harvest in 2024. On average over the years, quality-tested wines account for around 95 per cent of German wine production.