There are no secrets to the production of this remarkable sweet wine. The grapes are picked frozen on the vine (-7) and come into the winery. But in fact, it is one of the most complex and time-consuming productions in the history of winemaking. Imagine yourself in the winter in the cold on a steep slope of a vineyard in Bulgaria, picking frozen fruit.

The dessert wines from Tsarev Brod are now widely considered some of the finest “Stickies” or sweet wines in Bulgaria. This wine is bright fresh and a true celebration to drink and enjoy. Sweet ice-wine is also incredibly interesting and delicious to drink following extended aging.

The grapes are harvested in the first sub-zero temperature lasting more than 72 hours ( in December), than it is moved them to freezing chambers to continue the process.  The idea of the technology is to freeze only the water in the grapes. With very slow pressing (100 liters of juice are extracted from 100 kg of grapes in 24 hours), we separate the unfrozen sugar in the grape juice. Thus, if a normal white wine starts fermentation at 20% sugar, then with ice Riesling fermentation starts at 50% sugars in the concentrated grape juice. Only half manages to ferment and the wine remains naturally sweet. 4 months of slow fermentation and 1 year of aging in old French oak barrel.