“I love Riesling. I hope you will too after reading, or at least be encouraged to pick up a bottle.”
Can you think of a moment when you experienced awe and wonder in your life? Experiencing something of such grandeur that your senses were overwhelmed, a forever memory created? Concerning wine, Riesling is awe and wonder in a glass. Many winemakers, wine drinkers, wine critics, and sommeliers have had these aforementioned moments drinking Riesling.
Riesling is a true barometer of the climate and soil the grapes are grown in. Encompassing a kaleidoscope of flavors based on the wine’s origin and the style the wine is made in. From florals, mineral, citrus fruit, stone fruit, honeycomb, savory herbs, petrol, to tropical fruit, the varietal covers a vast spectrum of flavor and fruit profiles.
Chasing the Acids
The one attribute that always shines through wherever the wine’s origin or winemaking style…ACIDITY.
The acidity in Riesling can look like sparkling wine base numbers. Very low pH and high TA. For this reason, many winemakers look to balance the acidity with a little residual sugar.
This has been both a blessing and a curse to Riesling as often people do not know what to expect in a bottle. Is the wine sweet? Dry? While Riesling can be made in sweeter styles, and the American market has long been trained that Riesling is sweet, expressions do exist of bone-dry Riesling.
A Kaleidoscope of Characteristics
Originating from both abroad (Austria, France, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Chile, even the highest hills of Piedmont) and the US (Oregon, Washington, New York, California, Texas, Michigan), Riesling has a kaleidoscope of characteristics.
A Riesling’s style depends on a few variables:
Terroir of Origin: Certain regions known for producing more TDN (Petrol)
Grape Harvest:
- Earlier pick → citrus peel, lime, lemon, floral
- Later pick → kumquat, tangerine, orange, honeycomb
- Late Harvest → apricot, peach, honey, beeswax, ginger
Residual Sugar Amount: if any, the winemaker decides to leave to balance acidity
Fermentation Vessel: oak, stainless steel, concrete
Botrytis Level: Botrytis or “Noble Rot” is a fungus that intensifies flavor and sweetness required in late harvest Riesling.
Small levels desired in drier Rieslings (adds flavor concentration and complexity)
Anderson Valley’s Storied History With Riesling
Many varietals grow well in AV with exceptional varietal character showcasing the unique stamp that only Anderson Valley can impart, truly cool and coastal. Some of the earliest plantings in Anderson Valley were Riesling. Today AV has only 25 acres of Riesling across 7 producing vineyards.
Personally, I love Riesling, especially from Anderson Valley. Greenwood Ridge Vineyards was an early “aha” Riesling moment for me. The wine was so pure, so transparent, so textural, packed full of flavor, and expressive.
Our brand, Read Holland, focuses on Anderson Valley in particular and finding historical significance in the vineyards we source from. I looked for 3 years before finding an old vine Riesling vineyard in the coolest part of Anderson Valley, the Deep End.
Read Holland Wiley Vineyard Riesling
Our very first Riesling comes from the Deep End, only 10 miles from the ocean. The Wiley vineyard Riesling was planted in 1976. The block has Muscat capping the end of the Riesling rows, an Alsatian-style treat..
The Riesling and muscat (~8%) were harvested at night and brought in cold into the winery, where they underwent a long slow press cycle.
The juice was racked into old neutral puncheons and one stainless steel barrel for a co-fermentation.
The wine went through a long slow cool fermentation with native yeast.
Read Holland Riesling spent 6 months aging before bottling.
Is Turkey the Best Pairing With Riesling?
Thanksgiving and Riesling are often paired together due to Riesling’s versatile ability to go with many different palates as well as being able to stand alongside the array of rich foods of varying sweetness on the table at Thanksgiving.
However, Riesling’s versatility continues past its turkey counterpart. In fact, Riesling is so flexible in its stylistic offerings that the wine can go with many different flavor combinations and cuisines outside of Thanksgiving.
Think of Riesling as the Swiss army knife of wine. You can make an entire menu from appetizers through to dessert and serve Riesling the whole way.
Riesling Might Be THE Most Versatile Wine to Pair With Food
Aside from the bounty of Thanksgiving & Christmas dishes, here are a few of my favorite food pairings to enjoy with Riesling!
Whew 2020 – at it Again and I am Beat:
Cheez-its
Goldfish Crackers
Have’a Corn Chips
What Grows Together Goes Together:
Piment d’ville Espelette Crispy Chickpeas
Pennyroyal Laychee Goat Cheese
From the Sea:
Tuna Poke or Scallops
Ceviche
Dungeness Crab (Mendocino has an annual crab festival if you didn’t know!)
From the Land:
Pork Belly
Harrissa Roasted Chicken
Charcuterie
Fried Chicken (recipe from Mendocino local Chef Christina)
Stamp the Passport:
Choucroute
Thai (red/green curry)
Pad Thai
Sushi
Chicken Tikka
Veggies Only:
Asparagus
Cheese Souffle
Channa Dal
Deviled Eggs (Chef Janelle at The Bewildered Pig has THE best on the planet)
~ Ashley Holland, Winemaker Proprietor Read Holland Wines
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