Wine of the day: Rheingau Riesling
The Rheingau is Germany's classic wine producing region. Almost all of the vineyards are planted with the aristocratic Riesling grape and in great years the area produces extraordinary wines. Those who know their grapes know that Rieslings contain significant amounts of residual sugar and that without a compensatory amount of acidity they'd simply taste like fruity sugar water. Aware that they need to retain acidity, the Rheingau winemakers don't subject their vintages to malolactic or secondary fermentation as the makers of high-acid wines such as Chablis do. The result is brilliantly balanced wine.
We enjoyed a bottle of Riesling from Weingut Robert Weil in Kiedrich, where 52 hectares of vineyards (96% Riesling and 4% Pinot Noir) are cultivated in an environmentally friendly manner with organic fertilizer and without herbicides. This leads to elegant, complex wines with many nuances of flavour and bouquet and a distinctive fruitiness. Our tasting notes: 2001 Qualitä´³wein Trocken; perfect interplay of acidity with natural sweetness supported by a mineral character that speaks of slate; hints of apple, spice, apricot, honey, orange; medium-bodied with a memorably flavourful finish. Excellent value for 10 euros.
