reese-ling
Riesling enjoys a special place in the pecking order of white wine royalty. The grape does not yield big and varied styles like Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc nor it is regarded as too exotic in the vein of Viognier. Riesling is a light skinned cool climate grape that produces delightfully easy drinking wines of fruit and floral notes.
While its origins have been a subject of Franco-German debate, Germany has come to own the Old World style, honing it to critical acclaim in Germany’s Mosel Valley as well as Rheingau and Pfalz. Many of the riverside vineyards are planted on steep hills rich in slate and yield wines of ripe fruit and splendid acidity. German Riesling styles generally range from bone dry to unctuously sweet.
The French region of Alsace is also noted for its interesting, full-bodied style. Australia though is credited with leading Riesling’s new world revolution, crafting a dry style with layers of fruity aromas in the regions of Clare and Eden Valley. Canada, too has earned acclaim atop the Riesling bandwagon but with the extreme style of opulently sweet ice wines.
around the world
While Mosel Valley rightfully holds the mantel for making outstanding Riesling with hallmark minerality, Clare Valley in South Australia has earned rich praise for its bone dry yet fruity styles, turning out more off dry styles in recent times. America’s Washington state struck gold in its Columbia Valley where temperatures similar to Mosel and granite soil yielded sublime Rieslings of dry and sweet styles.
Tastes Like
Riesling is a classic cool climate white that achieves a brilliant balance of ripe fruit and vibrant acidity which is hard to come by in all but very few regions. Riesling stands out in the constellation of white wines as one that produces a range of distinct dry and sweet styles. The dry wines taste of citrus and stone fruit and hints of minerality while sweeter versions express notes of pear and nectarine.
On the palate
Riesling palate abounds with flavours of apricot, apple, and lemon peel with hints of flint and an interesting note of petrol.
Pairing Recommendations
Riesling’s fascinating balance of delicate flavours and crisp acidity makes it a great one to pair with rich spicy food, especially Indian. Most German Rieslings are off dry to generously sweet and work best to absorb spice while its lively acidity cuts through creamy dishes like dal and curry and Indian traditional breads like butter naan.
key styles
Germany is undoubtedly the best choice to discover the widest range of Riesling styles. Germany takes its wine classification very seriously under which one can find dry Rieslings (Trocken), off dry (Halbtrocken), sweet wines (Kabinett) and intensely sweet ferments
(Spätlese)
Inarguably the finest maker of New World Riesling, South Australia’s Clare Valley has crafted a fruit forward dry style of more intensity, tropical fruit and interesting minerality.
The Washington State Riesling began as a sinfully sweet turn in the 1960s partly because it sold well and because local winemakers were hesistant to pick the fruit early. Today, the region’s more self-assured winemakers bottle a multitude of cool climate dry and sweet styles.
