Here’s a well-written article by Jon Bonné on “New German Rieslings somewhere between dry and sweet” in the San Francisco Chronicle.
Lars - thanks for pointing it out and congrats on your mention!
Great article as usual from Jon. He really does his research and I always learn something from him.
How would others describe the difference between Halbtocken and Feinherb?
You’re welcome, Robert. I was pleased to read Jon’s Falkenstein shout-out, too.
He did do his research and he writes well.
For some producers, feinherb replaces the term halbtrocken, while for others, feinherb can extend above the limit (18 grams of sugar per liter) stipulated for halbtrocken.
Feinherb adds to confusion unfortunately. With no legal definition, I have tasted fringe rob wines that were essentially dry tasting and others that were full on sweet.
That’s true. But I’ve had halbtrocken wines that have tasted “dry,” while others tasted more sweet. Likewise, some trocken wines can taste more off-dry, even though they’re legally under 9 grams of sugar per liter. It all depends on the wine.
Indeed it does.
enjoyed that, thanks for sharing. it is amazing how americans have such sweet palates but insist they only like ‘dry’ wines.
Also amazing that people think that the article was well-written. Perhaps what is being said here is that some of you think that he got the ideas right, which is fair enough. However, the piece was so meandering and dreadfully written from a technical point of view that I stopped reading…
I think Jon’s article was well written. Most important, he has a good sense of what’s going on here. I also like his picks, disregarding my selection.
Honestly I found it to be yet another pablum piece. There’s nothing new there. Of course it’s always nice for German wines to get some press, but it sure wasn’t groundbreaking.
This is a fine article. But I am not sure, Jon got it right. When I am in Germany, the talk is always about premium dry wines, Grosses Gewaechs and others. At tastings people move to sweeter wines only to the end, if at all. In the US, it is just the opposite. You may have one dry wine at the beginning of a tasting, but then you move on to the fruity-sweet and noble-sweet wines. I have detected very little interest for feinherb, off-dry, halbtrocken wines among my American wine friends. They want their wines to be fully sweet (and in Germany bone dry).
You are drinking with the wrong friends.
Christian, I don’t doubt that it occurs at times, but that’s not my experience. In Trier, a number of shops and restaurants sell plenty of non-dry Mosel Rieslings. In Jon’s article, he lists some Mosel producers that sell a lot of their feinherb wines in Germany.
Yesterday, I added a comment to Terry Theise’s “Too Much Heat, Not Enough Light: The Pigott Fracas.” Of course, that doesn’t mean that there are Germans or Americans who insist on “dry,” but actually prefer sweet.
Acidity defines Riesling … High acidity 1.2 RS tastes dry bone dry … Weak acidity the Riesling @1.2 RS can taste like its 4%RS … Remember acidity defines taste … RS stated or governed alone is almost kinda irrelavant in the true sense of ne’er standing sweetness and the perceptions that arise…
Acidity defines Riesling …
Cheers !!!
This is news where?
And it’s not just acidity. Riesling is the most transparent grape for site expression.
Lars, VDP President Steffen Christmann at the 4th Riesling Rendezvous in Seattle, Washington State: “If you take the German white wines that cost Euro 15 plus, 95% of the production is dry.”
And so he lives up to his moniker yet again.
Christian, I’ve spoken with Steffen a couple of times at his estate about various topics. I understand that most 15-euro-plus German wines are dry, especially in the Pfalz and other German wine regions. It’s no different in France. My point is that legally non-dry German Rieslings (often termed “feinherb”) have become more popular in Germany. Van Volxem is a perfect example. In most vintages, the wines are dryish, rather than under 9 grams of sugar per liter. (The 2012 vintage was an exception.) Likewise, Peter Lauer has a number of off-dry wines that sell well here, too. Both producers say that their German private clients don’t want overly acidic, bone-dry wines. In the States, there are more Americans who are drinking feinherb Mosel Riesling, as well as some trocken. I think the comments below Terry’s article mention all of these points, including the shift that took place here after the “sweet wave.”
Really? Recently it seems I can’t swing a cat at an offline without hitting a wonderful slightly off dry Lauer wine.
And now the von Winning wines are getting out there more.
Then there are the feinherb & halbtrocken wines from Spreitzer & Selbach-Oster that are just delicious. Hofgut Falkenstein is now available, and most of what’s out there is trocken & feinherb. That Franken producer Lyle is bringing in (Weltner) is again all dry wines. Lots of talk on the board about Keller - more dry wines.
Of course if Christian is referring to the Washington DC contingent of the German Wine Society, then he is dealing with at least a contingent of some older folks who probably were not exposed to the dry wines much until now, and may not want to change.