Rediscovering German Riesling

By Lesley Jacobs

As the glow of summer begins to fade, you may – if you have the right kind of friends – find yourself invited to an Oktoberfest celebration.  And, if you are not a beer drinker, it may fill you with dread.  What to drink with schnitzel and sausage?  The obvious choice is a German Riesling.  Now stop shuddering.  Banish those images of hot pants, puka shells and bottles of Blue Nun.  The ‘70s are long gone.  A new era has dawned.  This is modern Riesling – fruit forward, balanced with pleasing minerality, perfect with almost any food.  Put simply, this is not your parents’ Liebfraumilch. 
Much maligned until recent years, Riesling’s popularity has been buoyed by the growing enthusiasm of chefs, sommeliers and wine merchants.  Indeed, Riesling is a wine of true pedigree with grapes being cultivated in Germany as early as Roman times and official records of the grape being documented in1435 in the area of Hockheim.  And, Oktoberfest revelers take note:  Riesling usually runs between 7-9% alcohol, making generous quaffing possible without the morning-after woes.
It is also a delightfully fickle grape.  Much as the vineyards of Burgundy vary vastly from one hillside to another, Germany’s Riesling grapes are affected by minuscule changes in soil, temperature, and angle of vineyard.  Johannes Selbach of Selbach-Oster in the Mosel region explains that “temperate climates with a long growing season are ideal for producing great Riesling.  Riesling must be simmered to perfection, never boiled.” 
Among its most endearing attributes, Riesling is immensely food –friendly.  Indeed, with its varying levels of dryness and sweetness, one could orchestrate an entire meal around this conciliatory grape.  So, how to choose?  Aside from the best-avoided “table wines” and the first level of “quality wine” (delineated by a QbA), Rieslings fall into one of six very specific categories.  QmP, or “Qualitätswein mit Prädikat”, is the brass ring you’re looking for on the label.  It means a wine predicated on a certain level of quality, dictated by rigorous government standards.  In Germany, the Oechsle level, equivalent to America’s Brix scale, delineates the physical ripeness of the grape, not necessarily its perceived sweetness in the mouth.  These levels, in ascending order, are Kabinett, Spätlese, Auslese, Beerenauslese (BA), Trockenbeerenauslese (TBA), and Eiswein. 
For general drinking and food-pairing, the wines to focus on are at the Kabinett and Spätlese levels. They can range from dry (trocken) to half-dry (halbtrocken) to sweet, depending on the methods employed by the vintner.  These are also the most affordable, usually ranging from $15 to $30 a bottle for a truly fine wine.  Try them with spicy, but not overpowering, Thai or Indian foods, a stellar pairing because the sugar in the wine tames the heat of the cuisine. 
Kabinetts also soar when served with mildly seasoned chicken or pork dishes, while Spätlese comes alive in concert with buttery lobster risotto or pork in fruit-accented or cream sauces.  Selbach even champions older Auslese with roast venison.  However, when you get into the Auslese, and especially the BA and TBA, levels, be prepared to spend some serious cash.  With the right food, though, it is most certainly worth every penny since these are Germany’s prize offerings, unctuously ripe with botrytis, the “noble rot” that gives the grapes their decadent sweetness. There are few experiences in life more glorious than nurturing a glass of honey-sweet Beerenauslese with a velvety rich slice of seared foie gras. 
If these brief notes aren’t enough to tempt you to embrace Riesling, then listen to Johannes Selbach, whose almost giddy enthusiasm is contagious.  “The people who drink Rieslings drink them because they find them exciting and not because it’s the thing to drink…fine, classic Rieslings are the true connoisseur’s choice.”   And what wine aficionado doesn’t want to be thought of as a true connoisseur?
Some Rieslings to try from Valencia Wine Company: Leitz Kabinett 2006; Merkelbach Spatlese 2005; Schmitt-Wagner Auslese 2003.
Lesley Jacobs is the wine director at Valencia Wine Company, as well as a freelance food and wine writer. Her work can be seen in Wine Enthusiast, Gourmet, and Santa Barbara magazines.