Refractometer for Wine PCE-Oe

With the viticulture refractometer, you can determine the sugar content in the must and thus the potential alcohol content in the wine. In Germany, the most important unit of measurement for the refractometer is the Oechsle (°Oe). In other countries, KMW, babo, KMN, baumé, and brix are common. The refractometer for viticulture has reading scales in °Oe, sucrose / brix, and KMN / babo.

All these units measure following the same principle, according to which 16.5 g of sugar produces 1% alcohol. In Germany, the weight of the must is a determining quality criterion and is used for wine classification. The German mechanic Ferdinand Oechsle, from Pforzheim, invented in the early 19th century the scale that bears his name and determines the specific weight of the must. 1 °Oechsle on the refractometer scale for viticulture corresponds to a specific weight that is 1 g / kg above that of water, which means 1.001.

In Austria, August von Babo developed the Klosterneuburg must scale. This scale provides the sugar content in grape must in weight percentages. The conversion to more precise Oechsle degrees is done using the formula "1 KMW = 5 °Oe".