The German term for “selected berries,” which is used in the wine trade to describe specially selected, overripe grapes that are hand-picked and then pressed separately from other grapes. Beerenauslese is one of the six subcategories of QmP (QUALITÄTSWEIN MIT PRÄDIKAT) and ranks above KABINETT, SPÄTLESE, and AUSLESE but below TROCKENBEERENAUSLESE. To attain the Beerenauslese category, the natural sugar content of the grapes must reach a certain minimum (110 to 128° OECHSLE, approximately 26 to 30 percent sugar by weight), depending on the region and the variety. The grapes are usually infected with BOTRYTIS CINEREA (called Edelfäule in German), which shrivels them, thereby concentrating the sugar. The superior wine made from these grapes is very sweet but has enough ACIDITY for proper BALANCE. Beerenauslese wines are quite rare, extremely expensive, and considered one of the world’s top DESSERT WINES. These wines will AGE for many years, during which they develop even more complexity. AUSTRIA has a Beerenauslese category that’s similar and requires a minimum 107° OECHSLE.