The grape harvest could also be described as a wine selection.

The timing of the harvest makes winegrowers nervous every year, as it is important to find the ideal harvest time, taking into account the meteorological conditions and the right degree of ripeness of the grapes.

The time of harvest is decisive for the quality and flavour of the final wine product. If the grapes remain on the vine for too long, the acidity of the grape decreases, resulting in a higher proportion of fructose. Depending on the wine region, this is also desirable if the wines are matured with residual sweetness. These statements do not apply to sweet wines.

The winemaker uses the refractometer to measure the grapes' Oechsle levels (sugar density of the grape juice).

The grapes are harvested by hand on smaller farms and by machine on large farms.

Quality-conscious large wineries are once again increasingly focussing on hand-picking, as the quality of the harvested grapes is significantly improved.

With machine harvesting, the selection of the grapes is not really good, which is reflected in the end product.