Riesling today has become the affluent wine critics little darling grape.
This is evidenced by the number of perfect “100” point scores you’ll see in
wine magazines like the Wine Spectator for Riesling wines. In fact, I
believe it is the wine writer, Jancis Robinson’s, favorite white wine varietal
and winemaker Randall Graham of Bonny Doon fame’s as well. Yet,
despite the wine aficionado’s affinity for Riesling, it has taken quite a
beating in the perceptions of the wine-buying public. This is due in large
part to visions of Blue Nun and other cheap, overtly sweet and lipid quaffs
that we associate as Riesling coming from Germany in much the same way
that White Zinfandel did much to trash the good name of the Red Zinfandel
wines from California. I suppose this reputation is to a large extent well
deserved, after all, the market is saturated with many of these cheap and
undistinguishable wines from Germany and other places like California,
but the truth of the matter is that Riesling, good Riesling, made in the
hands of someone that truly knows what they are doing and is blessed with
the ideal vineyard locations, can be something totally remarkable.
You would be hard-pressed to find a wine that is more versatile with foods
from bland to spicy, salty to exotic; Riesling wines can just about cover
them all. The key is their acidity and depth of fruit flavors. Riesling
comes in so many different styles from bone-dry to very sweet, it opens up
more possibilities for matching with food naturally. Even desserts can be
charmed by a bottle of Riesling.
Although you may find Riesling wines from quite-literally all over the
world, it is usually those countries and regions with a cool climate that
have the greatest success with Riesling wines. The grape needs to hang
on the vine as long as possible to pick up more complex flavors like
minerals and earthy nuances. If Riesling grapes are allowed to ripen to
quickly, they become those overly fruity and uncomplex wines that have
tarnished its good name. The countries that are making the most
spectacular examples of Riesling wines are of course Germany, France
(the Alsace region), Austria, Washington State, New York, Canada, New
Zealand and believe it or not, in the snow-capped hills of the Clare Valley
in Australia. In fact, Australia is starting to become more well known for
their outstanding Riesling wines than even their World Class Chardonnays.
When you think of Riesling wines, the first place that comes to mind and
rightly so, is Germany. This is the birthplace of Riesling grapes and they
were discovered from wild vines in the upper Rhine region way back in the
early 14th Century. You could say that Riesling is by far and away the
most important grape style to Germany and production of Riesling wines
more than double the next closest varietal wine. It’s a good thing too,
have you ever tried a German red wine? The Riesling grape is grown in
the Baden, Nahe, Pfalz, and Rheinhessen regions in Germany, however,
the two regions that translate into the best Riesling wines come from the
Mosel-Saar-Ruwer and Rheingau. These two regions are the ones you
need to keep an eye out for when you want to buy a quality Riesling wine.
The Mosel-Saar-Ruwer is named after the three interconnecting rivers
whose banks are the perfect locations for the vineyard sites. These
vineyard sites are so steep that they cannot be harvested by machine and
many a drunk and happy German grape picker has plummeted to their
untimely death while harvesting these vineyard sites. The Mosel-Saar-
Ruwer is at the northernmost region in which grapes can ripen; any further
North would make it impossible. This necessitates the need for these
steep slopes so that the grapevines can receive the maximum amount of
exposure to sunlight. The Rheingau is equally as impressive as the Mosel
and is considered Germany’s most aristocratic wine region.
Leave it to the Germans to make things difficult and indeed they have with
all of their bizarre wine-labeling rituals. There are so many classifications
and unfamiliar German words on their labels, many novice wine-buyers
become frustrated and move on to a bottle of wine from another country or
a different wine varietal altogether. Let’s see if we can’t list some these
terms and classifications for you:
• Halbtrocken – means off-dry. Think of it as half-sweet.
• Trocken – means a dry Riesling
• Johannisberg – is a reference to the famous German wine estate
Schloss Johanissberg in Rheingau. (I think this is somewhat misleading
because it gets abused by other wines that slap that on their label all the
time, including those from the U.S.)
• Tafelwein – table wine. Not much help here!
• QbA – These letters denotes a wine that meets certain levels of
quality and is generally very good.
• Kabinett – A Riesling wine that was harvested just as the grapes
ripen and is therefore fermented dry. Often the most bone-dry examples.
• Spatlese – A Riesling wine that was allowed to hang on the vine for a
little bit longer than the aforementioned Kabinett style and therefore a
little sweeter.
• Auslese – This style is even sweeter than Spatlese because the
grapes have hung on the vine until they show the first signs of shriveling.
• Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese – These are dessert style
Riesling that are made from grapes that have been affected with botrytis
cinerea in much the same way the Sauternes wines of France are made.
Actually Trockenbeerenauslese is a sweeter version. Go figure!
• Eiswien – Well, at this point they have left the dang grapes on the
vine so long, old man winter has come and frozen the grapes solid, thereby
concentrating all that sugar and very little free-running grape juice. Yes,
this is most definitely a sweet dessert style of wine.
I suppose that Germany is really doing you a favor in coming up with all of
these clever terms in order to help you better select the style of wine you
prefer. You will not get these descriptions from any other country,
although, France and Australia will let you know if one of their Rieslings
have been affected with botrytis or not. Canada also is famous for their
Ice wines which can be quite delicious as well as expensive. These are of
course the equivalent of Germany’s Eiswien.
I liken Riesling wines to a wolf in sheep’s clothing. With its very low
alcohol percentage, usually between 8% and 11%, and its tuity fruity
flavor profile, one would be lead to believe that this wine has no great
aging potential. However, if you thought this, you are completely wrong.
In fact very good Riesling wines can outlast most red wines in the cellar,
often times lasting for decades. Usually it is your great dessert style
Rieslings or great French Alsace Rieslings that have the longest life to
them. Drier styles take on more mineral flavors with age while sweeter
styles can take on honeyed textures and a more complex bouquet. In your
typical Riesling wine you are likely to encounter floral aromas of woodruff,
rose petal and violets. Stone fruits such as pear, peach, apricot, tangerine
or green, red and yellow apples. There can be some tropical fruits, but not
usually. Mineral flavors like flint, steel, gunmetal, smoke and even though
it may not sound appetizing, Riesling can take on Petroleum aromas of
terpene, diesel and kerosene that add complexity to the wine.
Riesling is considered a noble grape. In other words, it is one of the wine
varietals that are capable of producing some of the world’s greatest and
longest living wines. You may not believe it, but all of the wine critics
would argue this point home to you! If you are ever in a pinch to find a
white wine for dinner, Riesling is almost always a sure bet. Cajun, Asian,
Mexican, dessert, sipping by the pool in the Texas heat, you name it,
Riesling can cover it. There are so many different styles to choose from,
sweet or bone dry, and even dessert wine styles. There is one for every
occasion! Riesling is a Houdini grape varietal that frequently wears many
hats!
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