Wine Enthusiast Magazine
SubscribeTen years ago the only Rieslings being poured at an extravagant tasting of international wines would have been from Germany. Maybe Alsace, too.
Nobody would have been looking for those, though, except some elderly Army veterans who discovered Riesling while occupying Germany after Dubya Dubya 2. People would have been shoving through to get to the latest, oakiest, thickest, malolacticest Chardonnay from Burgundy, Australia, California, Piedmont or even Tuscany.
But now Riesling is hot, and it should be.
One of the world’s most blatantly tasty white wines, it also one of the most ancient, complex, transparent, shape-shifting varietals. It comes in styles as different as thick, sweet and honeyed, to bone-dry, crisp and steely.
The version that’s become a hot-seller in recent years is safely in between those extremes, like two of the first wines I tasted Thursday night at Wine Enthusiast’s Toast of the Town event in San Francisco. Scouring the venue for Riesling I found a surprisingly large assortment from Washington, Australia, Monterey or Mendocino in almost every corner of the War Memorial Opera House where the fashionable charity event was held. Similar tastings are coming to Atlanta April 17, Chicago May 1 and New York May 19.
A Hogue Riesling Columbia Valley 2006 had a sugary, sweet, ripe peach flavor. I could see why some people like it, but it’s hardly an enthusiast’s wine. Chateau Ste. Michelle Eroica Columbia Valley 2006 was a step up: more elegant, delicate, with a subtle German-style piney character and just reasonably sweet. German winemaker Ernst Loosen of the Mosel Valley supervises this wine for Ste. Michelle, so the flavor association is no surprise.
Things got more interesting for my palate at a couple of the Aussie tables. For a good, fresh, affordable Riesling that anyone could enjoy, I thought the slightly floral and spicy Leasingham Clare Valley 2007 Bin 7 from Australia was very good.
Another Aussie Riesling, Jacob’s Creek Reserve South Australia 2006 was appetizingly dry, full of Saar-like intensity of lemon zest, petrol (I can’t think of a better way to say than this old term from the Brits) and a long finish. This is a great value in Riesling at about $13.
Going too far in this direction for me was a second Clare Valley wine, the Angove’s Riesling Vineyard Select 2006. It was all petrol and bone dryness, without much fruit to sink your teeth into.
But really, what a great time to be a wine drinker, when wine types long appreciated by enthusiasts are also in the realm of the general wine consumer. The wider consumption of simple, generic Riesling encourages exploration of the better types, and that brings more of them into our country from Australia, Alsace and the motherland of Riesling, Germany.
Filed under: Varietals
7 Comments
7 Responses to “A Great Time to Be a Riesling Enthusiast”
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March 31st, 2008 at 2:23:35 PM
Yeah Jim, the English “petrol” is probably a better descriptor than the American “WD40.” One thing that you didn’t mention in praise of Riesling was relatively low alcohol. There is nothing better than washing down dinner with a bottle of trocken or halbtrocken and enjoying a clear head afterwards.
March 31st, 2008 at 9:51:31 PM
You’re right – it is a great time to be a riesling lover and hopefully a few more wine drinkers will put down their glass of reds once in awhile and enjoy them. We are seeing more and more rieslings coming out of the state of Washington. Randall Graham and Pacific Rim and of course, German winemaker Armin Diel producing a riesling for Long Shadows with Washington grapes.
April 1st, 2008 at 10:34:29 PM
As an accidental visitor to your excellent site (now bookmarked!) I was pleased not only that you praised some of our Australian wines but that they are mass-market products. Too often reviewers concentrate on the expensive wines which few folk can afford and ignore ones we can.
Incidentally, one US wine critic affected a whole generation of Aussie winemakers by constantly praising high-alcohol “heavy” reds to the extent that makers were producing wines to please that particular critic, knowing that a good report from him would boost sales.
April 3rd, 2008 at 5:53:27 PM
This is a great topic and Alsacian wines can be great even if made in California. Claiborne and Churchill here in the Edna Valley makes great dry Riesling and Gewurztraminer!
April 5th, 2008 at 8:40:53 PM
Your condescension regarding the Hogue Riesling is what many would describe as wine snobbery.
Not an enthusiast’s wine? A prestigious, rival publication would beg to differ. The Hogue Riesling consistently achieves scores in the high 80′s, while the Eroica regularly reaches the low 90′s. This is not to say that we should drink “points”, but this type of history speaks volumes about quality and consistency.
Both wines have qualities that are recognized and appreciated by wine enthusiasts.
April 7th, 2008 at 11:08:37 PM
I have to agree that there are some fantastic Rieslings to be found in America. And I think Washington (my home state) is making some great ones! Of course Poet’s Leap is wonderful. Also the DaMa Riesling. K Vintners has a good 2006 Kung Fu Girl and is just about to release their 2007 which is a bit more zingy than the 2006. I like them both. When I don’t have one of my few remaining bottles of 2005 Forster chilled (which should be drunk now, by the way), I know I’ll be happy with one of these conveniently local Rieslings. Oh, and I can’t forget Trust Cellars! (Where do I stop?)
April 11th, 2008 at 11:29:41 PM
I have recently become a Riesling “fan” after a bottle of Dr. ZenZen Apollo Falter, from the Rhineland. A wonderful, sweet taste.