Understanding the German Wine Label

When Ann and I were in Rudesheim, we fell in love with the regional wine: Rheingau Riesling. More specifically the Halbtrocke or half-dry. Yesterday, we spent 2 and 1/2 hours on an expedition (got it right, Ann!) for our beloved wine here in St Paul and nearby Minneapolis. Five liquor stores and 12(mostly different vintners) bottles later, we felt we had accomplished something wondrous.

Riesling  Grape Buds-2011 Season

In the midst of our perusing, we realized we knew little about the entire label of German wines. Wikipedia (where would we be without it!) gave me the best answers this morning:

Prädikat (Predicate) designations (the highest level of German wine classifications)

The Prädikatswein (formerly QmP) category of the classification contains most high-quality German wines, with the exception of some top-quality dry wines. The different Prädikat designations differ in terms of the required must weight, the sugar content of the grape juice, and the level required is dependent on grape variety and wine-growing region and is defined in terms of the Oechsle scale. In fact the must weight is seen as a rough indicator of quality (and price). The Prädikat system has its origin at Schloss Johannisberg in Rheingau, where the first Spätlese was produced in 1775^[4] where wines received different colour seals based on their must weight.

Vineyards on the slopes

The different Prädikat designations used are as followed, in order of increasing sugar levels in the must:
Kabinett fully ripened light wines from the main harvest, typically semi-sweet with crisp acidity, but can be dry if designated so.
Spätlese - meaning "late harvest"
typically semi-sweet, often (but not always) sweeter and fruitier than Kabinett. Spätlese can be a relatively full-bodied dry wine if designated so. While Spätlese means late harvest the wine is not as sweet as a dessert wine.
Auslese - meaning "select harvest"
made from selected very ripe bunches or grapes, typically semi-sweet or sweet, sometimes with some noble rot character. Sometimes Auslese is also made into a powerful dry wine, but the designation Auslese trocken has been discouraged after the introduction of Grosses Gewächs. Auslese is the Prädikat which covers the widest range of wine styles, and can be a dessert wine.
Beerenauslese - meaning "select berry harvest"
made from individually selected overripe grapes often affected by noble rot, making rich sweet dessert wine.

Vineyards by Abbey of Hildegard

Eiswein (ice wine)
made from grapes that have been naturally frozen on the vine, making a very concentrated wine. Must reach at least the same level of sugar content in the must as a Beerenauslese. The most classic Eiswein style is to use only grapes that are not affected by noble rot. Until the 1980s, the Eiswein designation was used in conjunction with another Prädikat (which indicated the ripeness level of the grapes before they had frozen), but is now considered a Prädikat of its own.
Trockenbeerenauslese - meaning "select dry berry harvest" or "dry berry selection" made from selected overripe shrivelled grapes often affected by noble rot making extremely rich sweet wines.

Discovering this type of wine is a great experience and one I am happy to "dig" into. Of course, tastings are mandatory. I'll let you know my classifications and ratings on the various vintners and vintages.
As always, your comments are appreciated!

TTFN: njpa