Appreciating Riesling

Riesling is a difficult grape to understand and appreciate. It has many faces, from sparkling (Sekt from Germany), and dry to sweet made from botrytis noble rot grapes or grapes frozen at -8ºC, and with all kinds of sweetness in between. The common characteristics of all Rieslings are high acidity and relatively low alcohol.

In my discussions with Mosel winemakers, including Reinhard Löwenstein, the 13th generation of Weingut Heymann-Löwenstein, and biodynamic winemaker Clemens Busch, they all stressed the influence of slate on German Rieslings. Blue slate lies deeper underground and vines have to work hard to get the trace minerals, resulting in wine with more minerality—the typical elegant Mosel style. Red slate has a more rounded mouthfeel with gooseberry and red fruits, while grey slate gives more yellow and tropical fruits. At the Riesling Journey masterclass conducted by Carsten Klane from German Fine Wine in Hong Kong last month, we tasted several German Rieslings alongside Rieslings from Alsace and Australia, and the differences were obvious. German Riesling has a tighter and leaner structure, especially the Mosels which can be steely, while Alsatian Riesling is bolder. Australian Riesling is generous but lacks the subtlety of those from the Old World when compared side by side.

Apart from the sweet noble rot and ice wine Rieslings, where consumers know that the wines are, well, sweet, many people are confused and put off by the off dry/medium style Rieslings from Germany. I have to confess this is the reason I didn’t go near Riesling when I first explored wine. The trick, instead of focusing on the sweetness, is to think about the balance between sweetness, acidity, alcohol and fruit. A well-made medium dry Riesling is not cloying like syrup, but concentrated and fruity with a nicely balanced sweetness set against the acidity. It can go well with a variety of savoury dishes from steamed dumplings (蒸餃子) to Kung Pao chicken (宮保雞丁) and sweet and sour prawns (咕嚕蝦球).

A couple of useful tips on sweetness when you buy German Riesling: Kabinett, Spätlese and Auslese are categorised according to the sugar level at the time of harvest. They can all be either dry or medium. You need to interpret this with reference to the alcohol level. For example, a Kabinett with 11% alcohol will be dry while one with 8% alcohol will by semi-dry. Similarly, a dry Spätlese has about 12-13% alcohol and  a dry Auslese about 13-13.5%.

Here are a few useful German - English translations to help you read the labels:

• Trocken: Dry. Any wine with this word will have less than 9g/l residual sugar.
• Grosses Gewächs (GG)/Erste Gewächs: Equivalent to Grand Cru. Dry wine from Erste Lage (first growth vineyards) under the VDP classification. Alcohol level usually 12-13.5%.
• Halbtrocken: Off-dry, usually 9-18g/l residual sugar.
• Feinherb: Half-dry, an unregulated designation, usually sweeter than halbtocken, in the range of 12-40g/l residual sugar.
• VPA: the Association of German Quality Wine Estates.

Clemens-Busch is available from German Fine Wine, and Weingut Heymann-Löwenstein is available from Berry Bros & Rudd.

Biodynamics wine explained

‘What is biodynamic wine?’ Ask this question of Christine Saahs, owner of Nikolaihof from Wachau, Austria, and you will receive a two hour lecture, exactly what we had recently!

Biodynamics advocates believe soil is a living thing. Conventional farming, with heavy use of fertilisers, chemicals, pesticides, etc, is like junk food to the soil that ‘kills’ it. Biodynamic farming builds healthy living soil through interaction with and in harmony with the environment so it can nurture plants and produce wholesome food that vitalises humanity. Advocates also believe there is a link between the soil and the moon. The earthly and cosmic powers integrate and create a new quality in the final produce.

Yet while these all sound credible, some biodynamic practices like burying cow horns filled with cow manure and dynamising the compost (stirring a mixture of herbs and water vigorously for a period of time), are regarded as superstitious by many and draw criticism. However, even in those cases I do think there are possible scientific explanations: cow horns consist of calcium, an essential element for improving soil structure and regulating soil acidity, and it may possibly leach into the decomposing manure and then into the soil. Stirring vigorously, like whisking ingredients vigorously when baking, introduces more oxygen into the mixture which could promote micro-organism growth in the soil. I also think that using different herbs and wild flowers to prevent or cure vineyard diseases and pests is akin to the Chinese drinking herbal medicine. Chinese doctors will tell you that their medicine helps restore your internal balance but won’t explain to you how. As for following the lunar calendar, the gravitational forces that cause tides exist on land as well. Biodynamic vinegrowers irrigate when the tide is high on the premise that water will be ‘pulled’ into the vines more easily. Similarly, they prune when the tide is low to minimise sap loss at the pruning wounds.

Aren’t all of these quite logical? Christine summed it up well, ‘Biodynamics is one step ahead of organic farming. Organic farming sustains the health of the soil; biodynamic practices improve the health of the soil’.

Whether conventional, organic or biodynamic, I believe it is the passion and belief of the practitioners that makes the difference. Christine is so convinced of biodynamics and speaks with such passion that she, dressed in her traditional Austrian outfit, looks like a biodynamic human being. But both good and bad wines can be made whatever viticultural practices are used, and only when growers put their heart and attention into the vineyard can they grow grapes that are healthy and of high quality. I suppose this is what home cooking is all about: mums cook with love and care!

Having said that, I do think sometimes biodynamics enthusiasts go a little too far. Christine said biodynamic wine, even after bottling, still responds to the moon. The wine tastes fruitier on a 'fruit day', more vibrant on a 'flower day' and neutral on a 'root day'. I questioned this but didn’t get a satisfactory answer. Yes, wine is a living thing because it evolves in the bottle due to reaction with (or lack of) oxygen, but does it really respond to the moon?

We tasted five wines, all intense and fresh with a common earthy aroma. While I couldn’t tell whether they were biodynamic in a blind tasting, I am certain that they were all very well-made wines from a caring winemaker. By the way, we tasted the wine on a 'root day', so according to Christine, not the best day for tasting.

Nikolaihof's wines are available from Cottage Vineyards.

Biodynamic wine anyone?

For those who are sceptical about biodynamic or even organic wine, Dr Kaye McAulay, owner of Vynfields Organic Wine in Martinborough, New Zealand, who has just been awarded the biodynamic certification a few weeks ago, insists that there is a difference. Pesticides and fungicides used in conventional vineyards mask the expression of terroir in the wine. Organic wine is chemical free so it is more expressive. Biodynamic is 'organic plus' and the wine is even more vibrant. Certainly the Vynfields Pinot Noir 2008 was the most vibrant Pinot at a tasting I attended recently.

Hong Kong distributor: Northeast