Wine with Leslie: divine German wines, including a €10 Riesling that goes down well
German wines are experiencing a renaissance at present
This week’s column was inspired by another book, The Wines of Germany by Anne Krebiehl MW, which is part of the excellent Infinite Ideas Classic Wine Library. Krebiehl does a masterful job of explaining the complexities of German wine laws and the subtleties to be found in the different sites in the 13 different wine regions
Germany is the world’s 14th largest wine producer, the second-largest producer of Pinot Noir and the largest producer of Riesling. Given the joys to be found in good Riesling and Pinot Noir it is worth spending some time studying this cool northern wine country.
In addition, German wines are having a renaissance at the moment, partly due to modern winemaking and viticultural knowledge, but also thanks to climate change which has dramatically improved the quality of grapes being harvested.
Germany’s wine regions are located between 47.5 and 51.5 degrees Latitude, making it the most northerly of all the great wine producers. There was a time when winemakers in the Mosel and other classic regions would expect to have to send their under-ripe grapes to be made into Sekt a few (or several) times a decade, but that is no longer the case.
German Appellation rules are annoyingly inconsistent it should also be said so best to rely on producers rather than regional names - if only bureaucracy took the wine laws as seriously as the beer purity law, Krebiehl laments.
German wine laws focus on the natural sugar content of grapes as a marker of style and this has led to lots of sweeter styles. However almost all the German wines on the Irish market are Trocken (dry), and those few that do have sweetness, (such as from the Mosel), are balanced with acidity and freshness and can be a joy to drink.
A few of my selections below are from O’Briens for the simple reason they have the best value selection of German wines of any shop in the country and one of the largest ranges. Until the end of the month, a selection of their German range is reduced so now is your chance to try them.
The Lingenfelder range is very consistent and the family have over 500 years of history in the Pfalz region - the current wines are made by the 13th generation winemaker Rainer Lingenfelder. Also below are fine examples from Martin Wassmer in Baden, Robert Weil, Weingut Geil and an excellent bargain Riesling that is now widely available in Independent shops.
This Dry Riesling won a Silver Medal at the NOffLA Awards recently and is thus outstanding value as you almost never find drinkable Riesling at this price. Classic lemon and apple aromas with a mineral-salty edge, textured and zingy with pleasing soft apple and kiwi fruits and a dry finish. The Baer Pinot Noir is also worth trying.
Lingenfelder Hare Gewürztraminer, Pfalz, Germany - €13.45 (was €15.45)
O’Briens have long stocked Lingenfelder and I’ve mentioned the Bird Riesling and others in the past but never their Gewürztraminer, that fragrant pungent grape we tend to see more from Alsace. This has lychee and floral aromas and lovely weight and texture and despite this the wine is largely dry with a savoury taut herbal finish. A perfect match for Thai Green Curry, on its own or with cheese.
Selbach Riesling, Mosel, Germany - €13.95 (was €15.95)
This is the value offering in the Selbach range and a little richer than the 'Selbach Incline' (€16.95) Classic Mosel aromas of melon, dessert apples and lime but be warned, this does have residual sugar (it is 10.5% abv), but the sweetness is balanced by clean zingy acidity. Perfect on its own or with a cheese plate but try also with spicy food.
I featured the Robert Weil Kabinett earlier this year and in the past have mentioned their gorgeous honeyed dessert wine Auslese. Founded in 1874, Weil’s wines were a favourite of Kaiser Wilhelm and many of the 19th Century European courts. Bone dry with pleasing lemongrass and crisp apple scents, textured on the palate with a flinty salty character and a pleasing rounded finish with a hint of ozone.
Baden is the most southerly and warmest of Germany’s wine regions and consequently its most important region for growing Spätburgunder, their name for Pinot Noir. The unoaked version (€20) is perfumed, fruity and supremely drinkable but this single vineyard Maltesergarten is delicious with layers of dark cherry and blackberry fruits with weight and concentration, forest floor pungency and pleasing length.
German Pinot Noir doesn’t always have density or intense flavours but it almost always has elegance and fragrance. This is on the lighter side but it makes up for it with perfume and subtlety with a selection of red fruit aromas, soft berry fruits on the palate and some pleasing earthy complexity on the finish.
Orval is one of those world classic drinks that everyone should taste several times in their life. Made inside the walls of the Abbaye Notre-Dame d’Orval, a Trappist (Cistercian) monastery in Wallonia in Belgium. They make another lighter beer for their café but in practical terms this is their only beer. The beer is dry-hopped, uses a selection of yeasts including Brettanomyces Bruxellensis, and is bottle-conditioned.
Pouring a light hazy gold colour with aromas of pear, citrus and spice with a hint of brioche. Fruity, layered and complex on the palate with crisp hoppy freshness, and lingering spice and zest on the finish.
