Reisling???!
Reisling???
Lately I've gotten into some dessert wines: Moscato, sparkling whites and rose... But Reisling is one I can't get a grasp on... sometimes it's bland and cheap... Sometimes it's nice with dinner, but sometimes it's a beautiful sweet dessert wine. How can I tell the difference between the drier Reislings and the Dessert by the label? Advice?
Answers:
First the German rieslings. Even the drier styles of riesling from Germany tend to be off-dry. The degree of residual sugar will be indicated on the label. In order from driest to sweetest:
Kabinett
Spatlese
Auslese
Beerenauslese
Trockenbeerenauslese
Eiswein
So, your dessert rieslings are generally the last three.
Most Australian style rieslings are drier than the German ones. Riesling from Alsace in France tends to be bone dry.
New world rieslings that are very sweet will usually be labelled as late harvest or ice wine.
Hope that helps.
Cheers!
Hope this helps!
german rieslings tend to be drier than ones produced in the US.
I also don't really consider either form a dessert wine.