Riesling Renaissance

by Freddy Price

I got very excited when I saw this book online. It doesn't happen often that one dedicates a whole book on the Riesling variety. The title, too was promising. A new look at Riesling, lifting the burden of misconceptions that still hangs on its vines. "Riesling Renaissance" starts with a brief overview of the rise and fall of German Riesling in the last century and Riesling's affinity to terroir. Then follow 8 country chapters in which Mr. Price looks at different growing regions in more detail.
The title of the book is a bit of a misnomer. I expected a more thorough analysis of how the renaissance of Riesling manifests itself and what started it in the first place. To simply state that "Chardonnay had lost some of its glamour and Riesling developed a new impetus" touches the surface only. The selection of winemakers which are portrayed after each region focuses perhaps a bit too much on established estates, with the new generation of winemakers such as Bernhard Knebel, Andreas Adam or Sybille Kuntz falling short in the representation of who is instigating a new interest in Riesling wines amongst consumers. However, Mr. Price's life-long dedication to Riesling shines through when he talks about specifics of vineyards, particularly those in the Mosel region. Finally, the book is full with typographical errors, e.g. Hermann J. Wiemer's last name is spelled "Weimer" throughout the book. One should think that more care would have been taken on the publisher's side.