~$30US, 100% Riesling, Clare Valley, South Australia

Considered by some of be one of Australia’s greatest dry Riesling, this was a treat to unscrew and enjoy. Pale green-straw in color with a nose that continued to evolved over 2-3 hours. Initially very compact with a lanolin and chalk slurry nose with some lime and green apples  - it started to develop into a very “round” nose of fresh apricots and watermelon with an integrated oiliness. It reminded me of the old-school watermelon and sour-apple  ‘Now and Laters’ - the long ones that you could lick and sharpen to a point. Except you just dropped it into the playground pea-gravel that had some a little oil spill on it, and you ate it anyways.  I just couldn’t stop smelling this wine when it got about 3 hours of air - tightly woven layers of aromas that kept going in unexpected directions.

The palate was quite fierce in its acidity and focus. At first, it was just blasting my palate with the acid attack and discombobulated in the midpalate - but as it opened it really filled out nicely and showed a lively transition from the attack through the finish. There is so much minerality here it’s obnoxious…It clearly possesses a different character of mineralty than Mosel or Nahe wines - a somehow ‘rawer’ smashed gravel and less flinty-slatey.

This is a great wine showing a “New World” Riesling that shows impeccable wine-making, a minerality that would please even the the gnarliest spelunkers / rock-heads , and most of all  - a vigor that didn’t stop. It woke up slowly, but was positively dancing as that last drop was sipped.

Leitz Riesling Rudesheimer Klosterlay Kabinett, Rheingau, 2007: ~$15US:

My second bottle of this wickedly delicious fruit dart. I can’t imagine a cleaner, fresher expression of tropical fruits (lime, pineapple, mango, guava) in liquid form. I love the lean back, open wide and get-rocked character. The soil seems to be speaking a little more than last time though, which is fine by me - bringing a Pixie-sticks-meet-chalk finish. This just screams value.

Russiz Superior Pinot Bianco, Collio, 2006 ~$US20:

Another big winner here, but it started out a really lean and shy -  too much of a chill on. Once it got closer to room temperature, beautiful, ethereal and sexy aromas just poured out of the glass. Strawberry shortcake, with some fresh peaches in the mix - close my eyes, and this could have been a great Pinot Noir on the nose. Eucalyptus, roses, lemon tart, brambles - I could smell this for hours and got just as much pleasure by putting my nose into the glass as I did actually drinking the stuff…wierd.

Rich in color and on the palate, but not heavy or tiring. A mineral vein and acidic structure really kept this wine tight and focused. Finished long with dried flowers more strawberry patch.  It was great with pasta with a ricotta, pea and jowl bacon sauce - I think this would’ve been even better with buttery fish or crustaceans.

Both, serious wines - the Pinot Bianco more of a sipper and thinker, the Riesling an all out assault.

This Riesling (~$23US) from the utterly unfailing portfolio of Terry Thiese has been described as one of the best Riesling values in his 2008 book. Unlike the majority of its countrymen, it was sealed with a cork - albeit synthetic - which is fine by me. It poured a mellow golden color, quite a bit richer in color than the Hirsch a few weeks ago. Leaping from the glass with surprising complexity - very clear apricots, surrounded with wintergreen, pine tree, red cherry and pineapple.

The palate was a ripe fruit extravaganza - I hesitate to call it hedonistic, but the fruit was there for the picking. Apricots and cherries, balsam, with a maritime character underneath. Bone dry at 13% ABV, with no heat and a fullness and weight that was rich but never fat. Transitioned beautifully. It loosened up overtime, becaming rounder and easier to dillineate the flavors. Seductive, polished, well-proportioned.

~$21US, 100%Riesling, Urziger Wurzgarten, Mosel, Germany

Fragrant yellow peach and apricot preserves. Very primary and ripe at this point - leaning towards a touch more sweetness than the acids can balance. After 2 days - more integration and secondary flavors play out, with ripe watermelon, plum candy and slate on the finish. More elegant and food friendly with the air time as the acidity comes into focus. This is drinking well right now, but but there are better values offering much of the same in the near-term. However I believe this has the potential to become an excellent Riesling with 5-7 years patience.

A stark contrast with the Leitz in terms of balance and flavor, once again demonstrating the fascinating breadth of Riesling.

~$15US, 100% Riesling, Rheingau, Germany

Slight hay color. The nose brings gobs of marzipan, green apple, white peach, some red cherry and wet slate. Powerful, fresh and vibrant. The wine bursts wide on the palate gripping the tongue with tons of ripe fruit, teasing with a notion of sweetness, then drilling towards a tangy, clean finish.  Passionfruit and guava in the mix. Right now this is a wild ride of a wine - an extraordinary amount of fruit without going into sweet-tooth land, balanced with ripping key-lime acidity.

This is the proverbial fruit scalpel to the proverbial fruit hatchet. I can’t imagine another Riesling at this price I’d rather have with Indian food. Kudos Josef-L - 2007 is looking like a classic and beautiful year in the Rheingau, after a slightly outsized 2006.

~$22US, 100% Riesling, Erdener Treppchen Vineyard, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Germany

I don’t know why, but I’ve been a little afraid of the ‘A’ word when it comes to German Rieslings. ‘A’ as in Auslese or Selected Harvest - typically meaning selected ripe berries. The lightbulb went off in my head after the recent fantastic Donnhoff Spatlese, where I realized that these labels (Kabinett, Spatlese, Auslese, etc) are quality markers, not necessarily universal sweetness indicators. No doubt, Riesling can be high in residual sugars, especially Auslesen, but there is a lot more going on than just ’sweet’.

Riesling’s core minerality and acidity affords it’s flexibility and interpretive diversity. For instance - the longer hang-times of Spatlesen or Auslesen concentrate flavors (including sugars and acidity). Of course the weather, climate, and place affect exactly how and how well this happens, but the results (in the hands of able growers) can be strikingly balanced, proportionate and concentrated wines, from dry to dessert styles. 

The Merkelbach poured a pale hay, almost clear. Honeysuckle and pears on the nose. The palate moved from ripe apples and pears to a powerful mineral-driven midpalate - like a hitting a gravel speedbump while dragging your tongue on a smooth nectary road. The lemon/lime acidity charged back with some nice lift, but lacked a little oomph to really take it all the way home. 

Another very versatile wine, easy to enjoy with aged cheeses, by itself, or with all kinds of food (richer pork and grilled chicken dishes especially). A delicious example, not one to overthink - but I’m not afraid of Auslesen anymore. 

~$46US, 100% Riesling, Nahe, Germany

Helmut Donnhoff is a master wine-creator, without question. His family’s Nahe vineyards produce exemplary Rieslings that stand up to any in the world, each with a signature sense of balance, place and power.

The Oberhauser Brucke is absolutely shocking in its intensity across the board, from nose to finish. There is a sense of infusion, like the liquid had been invisibly fortified by more Riesling-ness. Dazzling and complex on the nose, with pineapple, lime, and green apple on the top end and a substantial base of red cherry, red apple, and red currant. Even strawberry. Vivid like a kaleidoscope, but hard to pin down definitively.

Viscious palate transitioning from the lush fruit towards a brilliant acidity - like a gemstone hiding in a velvet bag. Perfect balance, I never once even considered the notion of ’sweetness’ or ‘acidity’ or ‘minerality’….everything just seems so right, concentrated, full of energy and vibrancy.  Of course it was all there, but the qualities of each played into an overall transcendent harmony. A singular wine enjoyable now, but full of complexities to be revealved over the next 10-20 years. One of the most memorable wines this year.

~$20US, 100% Riesling, Columbia Valley, WA

Floral nose with white peaches. Medium bodied palate with Korean plum-hard-candy flavors throughout. Focused acidity providing a lively counterpoint to the fruit ripeness. Developed secondary flavors like banana and ripe honeydew with airtime as it warmed to room temperature. Very balanced in a dry style with a slightly minerally finish. Clean and pure - One of the strongest new-world Rieslings I’ve had. Perfect with Chinese - especially with shellfish dishes.

~$14US, 100% Riesling, Rheingau, Germany

Leitz’s Dragonstone is a wine I keep coming back to, despite not really getting it on first tasting. I gave it a second try a few months ago and was able to observe some nice evolution in the bottle - the early 2005s had a fierce minerality supported by great fruit, nearing a spatlese-level of ripeness (at least to my palate) - but it was disjointed. The later 05’s started to get that beautiful petrolly aspect along with a tapering of the fruit and an integration of the slatey mineral notes - making for an altogether more mature, harmonious and integrated wine. It was a welcome change, and I was interested to see if the 06’s followed suit.

My first ‘06 poured a very very pale straw - almost clear. The aromatics were obvious and clean with dominant white peach and fresh apple juice. Some nectary/floral notes beyond the fruit, and the tell-tale mineral rocky aromas that I’ve come to associate with this wine.

On the palate, I was pleasantly surprised by the freshness compared to the ‘05. On entry, the fruit ripeness dominates - but the brisk acidity comes dashing through to balance the wine perfectly - ever so slightly off-dry and chalky on the finish. Light-to-medium palate-feel and enough complexity/vineyard character/etc at this price point to keep my wife and I pouring more. In recent memory, I’m not sure I can remember a wine that was as simply refreshing to sip alongside a meal.

Very well-crafted, distinctive, refreshing and food-friendly - what else is would you need for a perfect summertime white? And I’m pretty sure that it will evolve in the bottle for a few years for anyone who has enough patience and discipline not to drink it now - but for me, I”ll be drinking it.

  (<- borrowed wrong label) ~$12US / LITER!, 100% Riesling, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Very tropical on the nose - pineapple, lime, and peaches. Spritzy with very firm acidity - moreso than the last 2 rieslings I’ve had, despite the overall impression of this as being sweeter on the palate.The signature Mosel slate-flavors seem to be subdued, but for the price, this really deliver great fruit and food-friendliness.  It paired will with Korean short-ribs.Wicked value for the liter.