| If you are looking for fine German wine and food, | | | | fruit flavors along with a bacony tang come |
| you should consider the Rheingau region of central | | | | across as lively rather than sweet. Succulent and |
| Germany. You may find a bargain, and I hope | | | | long on the finish. Score - 90 (Joel B Payne, |
| that you'll have fun on this fact-filled wine | | | | International Wine Cellar, Jan./Feb. 2006) And now |
| education tour in which we review a local Riesling | | | | for my review. |
| Spätlese, literally a late-harvest wine but in | | | | The first sip was deliciously sweet with plenty of |
| fact one made from ripe grapes. | | | | citrus. I really felt that I could finish the bottle; |
| The Rheingau region is the most central of | | | | what a headache that would give me. My first |
| Germany's thirteen wine regions but comes in | | | | meal consisted of packaged vegetarian lasagna |
| eighth both for vineyard area and the volume of | | | | covered with grated Parmesan cheese. The taste |
| wine produced. It has quite a special terrain. The | | | | of tropical fruits remained in my mouth for a |
| majestic Rhine River runs mostly in the east-west | | | | moderate period of time. The wine's sweetness |
| direction and has excellent exposure to the | | | | melded with the lasagna's tomatoes. For dessert I |
| summer sun. Furthermore the heavily wooded | | | | had a French-style lemon pie with a very buttery |
| hillsides block cold air. The Rheingau is known for | | | | crust. The two somewhat different citrus tastes |
| its Riesling which makes up over 80% of its total | | | | meshed; I got some pear notes as well. |
| wine production. Pinot Noir (Spätburgunder) | | | | I next tried the wine with a mushroom, pepperoni, |
| comes in second with a measly 10%. But this is | | | | and Italian sausage pizza. The Spätlese was |
| Riesling country and has been since the Middle | | | | too sweet for the pizza. It actually went well with |
| Ages. And since the late Eighteenth Century it has | | | | the toppings but there wasn't a lot of tomato. As |
| been making Spätlese and the sweeter | | | | always, I don't blame the wine for an unorthodox |
| Auslese wines. | | | | (read weird) food pairing. |
| If you are in this region you should visit | | | | The final food pairing was with a commercially |
| Öestrich-Winkel about thirteen miles | | | | barbecued lightly-herbed chicken breast |
| (twenty-one kilometers west of Wiesbaden, the | | | | accompanied by roasted potatoes cooked in |
| main city in the Rheingau region. Öestrich is | | | | chicken fat, and a fairly spicy tomato, garlic, green |
| home to the largest vineyard in the Rheingau. The | | | | pepper, and lime juice salsa. This time the wine |
| nearby Brentano Haus has a special room | | | | was lovely with sweet acidity and an excellent |
| devoted to the writer Goethe, but you need an | | | | citrus taste. It did a fine job of cutting the |
| appointment to visit. North of the town you'll find | | | | potatoes' grease, and believe me, they are |
| Schloss Vollrads, the oldest (we're talking almost | | | | greasy. This Riesling was a chameleon; it became |
| seven hundred years) private wine estate in | | | | spicy when faced with the salsa. In the presence |
| Germany with a tower and moat that were | | | | of fruit juice candy the wine was quite round but |
| inhabited for centuries. And don't miss the nearby | | | | somewhat short. It seems to go well with almost |
| Schloss Johannisberg, described in a previous | | | | everything. I did something that I don't usually do. |
| article in this series. | | | | I repeated this delicious meal with the same great |
| Before reviewing the Rheingau wine here are a | | | | results, leaving only a tiny bit of wine for the |
| few suggestions of what to eat with indigenous | | | | cheese tastings. No way that I was going to |
| wines when touring this beautiful region. | | | | waste a quarter bottle of this wine on cheese |
| Start with Riesling-Käse Suppe (Riesling and | | | | pairings. |
| Cheese Soup). | | | | I first tried this Riesling wine with a Havarti |
| Continue with Bauernente (Farmer's Duck). | | | | cheese. The wine enveloped the cheese and |
| For dessert indulge yourself with Riesling-Torte | | | | wasn't overly sweet. But frankly, why bother? |
| (Riesling Torte). | | | | Marbled Cheddar cheese increased the wine's |
| OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we | | | | acidity. |
| taste and review are purchased at the full retail | | | | Final verdict. Yes, yes, and yes. Maybe I am tired |
| price. | | | | of $10 wines, but frankly most $20-$30 wines |
| Wine Reviewed | | | | don't even come close to this delicious bottle. I |
| Letitz Rudesheimer Berg Roseneck Riesling | | | | not only would buy it again, but am actively |
| Spätlese 2004 7.5% alcohol about $25 | | | | looking for such a wine. I do have a Rheingau |
| Let's start by quoting the marketing materials. | | | | Auslese (a true late-harvest wine) that I will |
| Tasting Note: Wild floral aromas combine with | | | | review shortly. |
| guava, cinnamon and nut oils. The luscious tropical | | | | |