Sparkling wine

Secco is not a legal designation, but rather the common German trade term for semi-sparkling wine: a wine that contains more carbon dioxide than a still wine and, according to German wine law, has it technically added.

Secco Frizzante weiß von Sekthaus Raumland

Secco is not a legal term, but rather the name commonly used in the German trade for semi-sparkling wine (Perlwein): a wine that contains more carbonic acid than a still wine and, according to German wine law, has it technically added.

The German Wine Institute uses the term as a modern designation for semi-sparkling wines.

Are Sekt and Secco the same?

No, and the difference can be measured. The deciding factor is the excess pressure generated by the dissolved carbon dioxide in a sealed container at 20 degrees Celsius. Semi-sparkling wine has at least 1 bar and at most 2.5 bar; the German Wine Institute specifies 1 to 2.5 bar for Seccos. Sparkling wine (Schaumwein) requires at least 3.0 bar, and its carbonic acid must originate exclusively from fermentation; Sekt, as a quality sparkling wine, requires at least 3.5 bar. This is the distinction made by the Lower Saxony State Office for Consumer Protection and Food Safety. EU wine law draws the same line and lists semi-sparkling wine and semi-sparkling wine with added carbon dioxide as distinct product categories, separate from sparkling wine and quality sparkling wine. Tax law follows suit: a semi-sparkling wine under 3 bar is not subject to sparkling wine tax. One category is more time-consuming: the State Office specifies at least six months of production for quality sparkling wine, of which 90 days must be on the lees. How a Sekt is made is explained in a separate entry.

You can also tell by the closure, even without a measuring device. The agraffe, the wire cage around the cork, secures a bottle that is under high pressure; it is part of the standard sparkling wine packaging, which is legally protected in the EU. Secco closures must not be fixed with a wire cage; a screw cap or a cork with shrink-wrap foil over it are common. Wire means: not a Secco. Check the product category anyway.

What does Secco mean?

Dry. Duden lists "secco" as the Italian term for dry. However, the name says nothing about the residual sugar in the bottle in your hand; the taste designation is stated separately on the label. For semi-sparkling wines, the German Wine Institute lists three levels: "trocken" (dry) up to 35 grams of residual sugar per liter, "halbtrocken" (medium-dry) 33 to 50 grams per liter, and "mild" (sweet) over 50 grams per liter. This is broader than it sounds. For still wine, "trocken" means a maximum of 4 grams per liter, or up to 9 grams per liter if the acidity level corresponds. A semi-sparkling wine with the word "trocken" on the label may therefore contain significantly more sugar than a white wine with the same word on it.

Outside of wine law, the word even becomes a number: the Guidelines for wine-like and sparkling wine-like beverages of the German Food Book Commission cite "trocken," "sec," or "secco" as common designations for 15 to 35 grams of residual sugar per liter. And Prosecco? It does not belong to this family. According to Duden, its name comes from the Italian town of the same name, not from the word "secco." The German Wine Institute notes that it is made from the Glera grape variety and may only be produced in the DOC Prosecco region, as a sparkling, semi-sparkling, or still wine.

How is Secco made?

It starts with a finished wine, not must. While grape must ferments into wine, the carbon dioxide largely escapes; for the production of high-quality Seccos, this is captured and added back to the wine after fermentation. The State Teaching and Research Institute for Viticulture and Pomology in Weinsberg calls this step impregnation. For quality semi-sparkling wine, this carbon dioxide must originate from alcoholic fermentation, and it is pumped at 12 to 15 degrees Celsius so that gas losses remain low.

How much gas ends up in the bottle can be quantified. Under normal pressure at 20 degrees Celsius, about 1.8 grams of carbon dioxide dissolve in 1 liter of wine. In the semi-sparkling wine range, i.e., at 1.5 to 2.5 bar, it is about 3.7 to 5.2 grams per liter; for sparkling wines over 3.5 bar, it is between 6.5 and 9.8 grams per liter; for still wine, the legal maximum limit is 2 grams per liter. In Sekt, this amount comes from a second fermentation: sugar dissolved in wine and pure yeast are added to the cuvée, and the yeast breaks the sugar down into alcohol and carbon dioxide. A semi-sparkling wine with added carbon dioxide does not follow this path.

The Raumland sparkling wine estate explicitly states this for their 2024 Secco Frizzante white: semi-sparkling wine with added carbon dioxide. A cuvée of Bacchus, Kerner, Muskateller, and Scheurebe, gently pressed, 100 percent fermented in stainless steel, with 10 percent alcohol by volume, 11.3 grams of residual sugar, and 6.9 grams of acidity per liter. Anyone who writes the category themselves saves you the guessing.

Fruit Secco: sparkling juice without alcohol

A Fruit Secco is not a wine product. The Apple-Quince Fruit Secco from van Nahmen is a juice with added carbon dioxide: quince juice, apple juice, and carbon dioxide—nothing else is on the ingredient list, and only direct juice is used. The beverage is non-alcoholic and comes in a 0.75-liter bottle. Van Nahmen recommends serving it at 8 to 10 degrees Celsius in a sparkling wine glass.

Cold and in a slender glass

For Secco, the German Wine Institute recommends 6 to 8 degrees Celsius. The Association of German Sparkling Wine Producers recommends 6 to 10 degrees Celsius for Sekt, arguing that otherwise, the aroma and taste do not fully develop. So, put the bottle in the fridge early enough, not just when your guests are ringing the doorbell. Regarding the glass, the same association writes: A slender shape keeps the surface area small, thereby limiting air exchange, which helps the characteristic bubbles and fine aromas last longer. The roughened or etched point at the bottom of the glass is called the "moussier point" (from the French *mousse* for foam) and ensures that the dissolved carbon dioxide can rise in a straight line. Add a bowl of olives, a piece of bread, and two people who arrive before the food is ready—that is all the afternoon needs.

Semi-sparkling wine and Fruit Secco from our range

From Raumland comes the Secco Frizzante white, the semi-sparkling wine from this entry. Non-alcoholic options are the Fruit Seccos from van Nahmen: Grape, Apple-Quince, Apple-Currant-Raspberry, and Apple-Blueberry-Cherry.

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