Bacchus
What do you think of when you hear the word Riesling? Some people may conjure up an image of a wine bottle with a nun dressed in a blue habit. Or perhaps like me, you remember a tall bottle shaped and named after a stoic black tower that is collecting dust in your parents basement. Others may think of a wine that is overly sweet, ironically contrary to the reputation of the German people who produce it. However, after drinking many quality German Rieslings, from a simple Kabinett to a luscious, complex and life changing Trockenbeerenauslese, I beg to differ.
This does bring us however to the other problem with German wine, understanding the label. Up until recently, German wine labels have been harder to understand then the overwhelming popularity of NASCAR. But one producer above all, has been working hard at bridging the gap between Americans and German wine, Dr. Loosen. Ernst Loosen has been a pioneer in advancing German winemaking techniques as well as making wines easier to understand and therefore enjoy.
The entry level wine from Loosen is named “Dr. L” and you can find it for under ten bucks, which makes this wine a total steal. Along with the notes of apple, citrus, and mango the Dr. L Riesling packs a great amount of acidity, which coupled with it’s subtle sweetness delivers a well balanced wine. This is only one of many wines made by Loosen, one of which, the Erdener Prälat Auslese is a long time favorite of mine, retailing for around thirty dollars for a half bottle.
So why should you drink Riesling? I give you one word, Indian food. Ok that was two words. How about Mexican food, oooh or Thai food, or Vietnamese food, the list goes on and on. Spicy food is typically a hard match with wine (imagine a date ruining, sweat producing curry washed down with a full bodied overly tannic California Cabernet Sauvignon, ugh!) but pop open a bottle of perfectly sweet and tart Riesling and you have saved the day.
