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Food-Friendly Wines Part Three: Riesling

 

By Sharon Kapnick

 

Many wine lovers consider Riesling to be the most important white wine grape. Riesling used to receive the respect it deserved. For decades, it was more in demand than Chardonnay. Before Prohibition, it was the main white variety in the Napa Valley. In the early 1900s, the best German Rieslings fetched double the price of the best Bordeaux.

But Riesling has until recently been out of favor in the US, in spite of the fact that wine experts have long been singing its praises. In her book Vines, Grapes and Wines, published in 1986, the esteemed, witty British wine writer Jancis Robinson described Riesling as being of "unbeatable quality, indisputably aristocratic and ludicrously unfashionable.” Fortunately, fashions change. At last, Riesling has come back into favor — in a very big way.

According to the market-researcher Nielsen Company, Riesling sales have grown 98% between 2006 and 2008, making it the fastest-growing varietal in the US. It’s extraordinarily versatile, ranging from bone dry to lusciously, ethereally, divinely sweet. Rieslings in different styles can take you from aperitif to dessert. And Riesling is an excellent choice when you need one wine to accompany many different dishes — from seafood to poultry to meat.

Versatility is just part of what makes Riesling so appealing. Karen MacNeil, author of The Wine Bible, writes, “Given the right soil and winemaking methods, the triad of high acidity, high extract (the nonsoluble substances in wine that add to its flavor), and low alcohol leads to intensely flavorful wines of ravishing delicacy, transparency, and lightness.” In other words, Rieslings can soar. Unlike most white wines, top bottlings can age for decades.

And no country has more top bottlings than Germany. The Germans are Riesling experts. In fact, 61% of all Riesling plantings are in Germany. Riesling grapes are thought to have originated there.

Yet German wines have still not become as popular as they should be in part because people are often confused by their numerous styles and labels and because the wines have been handicapped by a hard-to-shake image of being sweet.

Knowing just a few important words helps decipher the labels. QmP (“Quality Wines with Distinction”) Rieslings are made in six ripeness levels. They include Kabinett — light, delicate, refreshing wines from ripe grapes with a touch of sweetness; Spätlese — more flavorful, more complex wines, characterized by high acidity and light sweetness, from grapes picked at least a week after normal ripeness; and Auslese — fuller, riper wines with significant sweetness, made from ripe and overripe grape clusters. Ausleses sometimes serve as dessert wines. (See my story "Beyond Beer: The Best Wines to Accompany Chinese Food” for more information on matching these wines with food.) Beerenausleses, Trockenbeerenausleses and Eisweins are sweet dessert wines.

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©2008 Sharon Kapnick for SeniorWomenWeb
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