About Riesling

It used to bother me. But not anymore.

I have gotten used to the condescending smiles of people when I mention that of all the wines produced on planet earth it is Riesling that I love the most.

"Riesling?", they ask. "Isn't that like... sweet?". Yes, it is. And no, it is not.

Riesling still carries with it the bane of being tragically misunderstood. Dry or sweet, its wines can be - simply put - divine. Jancis Robinson thinks that "Riesling is indisputably the greatest white wine grape in the world" and we have to agree. Compare a Riesling from Germany, Alsace, Austia and Australia and they are are all unmistakably Riesling. Yet, at the same time, they are also unmistakably German, Alsatian, Austrian and Australian. No other grape in the world can speak so markedly of the soils it is growing in without giving up its own distinct character.

This section of Der Kellermeister covers the basics of the Riesling variety: where it is grown and what it needs to grow successfully, false friends and how to pronounce it properly.