The Great Grapes – Riesling

Riesling is possibly one of the best of all white wine grapes with worldwide popularity. Dating back to the 15th century the Riesling grape was originally grown in the Rhine region of Germany. The array of wines that the noble Riesling grape creates ranges all the way from dry to dessert sweet and is one of the worlds top three white wines grapes that is still grown extensively in Germany. Riesling is a ‘terroir- expressive’ wine meaning ‘distinctive to the place of origin’. Riesling grapes also produce wines with excellent cellar longevity.

Riesling grapes are seldom blended giving the wines a fresh and invigorating flavour. Also, the grapes are generally very frost resistant and cope well in cooler climates. Winemakers in Austria, France and Canada have followed Germany’s lead and now also produce some superb wines.

Riesling is a delicate grape suited to sandy clay soils and slate. The grapes usually ripen in the autumn between the end of September and the end of November and extreme care is taken during harvesting to preserve the skin, as any damage can cause the leaking of tannin into the juice which can detrimentally affect the taste.

Well informed wine connoisseurs recognise that Riesling grapes produce some of the finest wines on the market. Young wines are crisp with a fruity and aromatic taste underpinned with an aroma ranging from honey and rose blossom to apples, grapefruit and peach. Equally appealing is the high sugar content making it a quality aged wine with preservation periods ranging from 5 to upwards of 30 years!

Germany produces exceptional sweet Riesling wine using a process called ‘noble rot’ which involves leaving the grapes on the vines longer than usual and beyond the normal harvesting period. The grapes are left until the ‘noble rot’ sets in caused by the Botrytis fungus. Damp autumn mist usually helps the process and the grapes are picked one by one as each one reaches the right level of rot. It can be expensive to harvest the grapes this way as sometimes as many as seven circuits of the vineyard is required to check and pick the grapes.

For Riesling wine known as “Ice wine” the process is slightly different. Here the berries are not left to go rotten but they are left to await the winter frosts. This freezes the water in the grapes but not the sugars, so that when the frozen grapes are pressed the resulting liquid, known as ‘must’, is much more concentrated as the ice crystals are left in the skins – which increases sweetness.

Riesling is widely grown in Austria where it can produce powerfully flavoured, full-bodied, dry wines with irresistible aromas. Alsace in France also has a long history of growing Riesling dating back to the 15th century. Like Austrian Riesling, these wines are dry, intense and are best drunk after a period of aging.

The planting of the grape is now becoming popular in other parts of the world including Australia, New Zealand and the USA although it still trails behind Chardonnay. However, as wine drinkers and buyers continually seek new tasting experiences – and wine makers continue to push the boundaries – this interesting grape could soon raise its level of popularity.

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