KEY POINTS:
"The way of paradoxes is the way of truth," wrote Oscar Wilde in The Picture of Dorian Gray. "To test Reality we must see it on the tightrope."
While I'm not sure what the favourite tipple of this great writer, thinker and bon viveur was, I'd wager he'd be a lover of riesling, that most paradoxical of grape varieties that manages to be at the same time cerebral and sensual, light and intense, as it balances on a tightrope between sweetness and acidity.
Like all paradoxes, riesling generates plenty of lively debate, something clearly in evidence at this month's In Praise of Riesling event held in Waipara, New Zealand's main contender for the country's riesling capital. Those in attendance may have been drawn there by our mutual appreciation of the variety, but opinions on what makes great riesling, stylistic preferences, and how to communicate its charms to the uninitiated were as diverse as the wines made from the variety itself.
One thing riesling enthusiasts tend to unite over is its purity and ability to express the place in which it is grown like no other white grape variety. This is reflected in the intriguing diversity of its different expressions that run across an exhilarating spectrum of citrus, stone fruit, flowers and minerals.
There's a riesling for every occasion; to suit an incredibly wide range of foods; and, I'd argue, most tastes as well: from the limey, bone-dry examples from Australia's Clare Valley, to the richer styles of Alsace, through to the sweeter, low-alcohol German versions and luscious late harvest and noble wines. This breadth of styles is something seen in our own production, although for me it's the ones with some sweetness that tend to work better here.
Unfortunately, with sweetness and even the name of riesling itself, comes a stigma - that of the cheap and not-so-cheerful, insipid, semi-sweet German examples seen in 60s and 70s. Add to that the local riesling rip-offs of that era, which were more often mongrel muller-thurgau-based wines than pure riesling, and it's no wonder the variety's reputation became tarnished.
Another seemingly contradictory characteristic to be found in riesling is the way that its sweetness is often perceived. Given its inherently crisp acidity, even wines with a liberal slug of sweetness can actually taste quite dry, something that's caused confusion and led to difficulties describing styles to the wine drinker.
This was one of the hottest debates at the Waipara riesling event, with one wine scribe pleading with industry members present for more clarity in riesling labelling. However, wineries are more reticent in breaking riesling down into categories of sweet, medium and dry in the knowledge that the merest suggestion of sweetness on the label puts off plenty of potential drinkers.
In the US, the International Riesling Foundation, formed last year to promote the variety, suggested a colour coding for rieslings related to "apparent sweetness" as a solution.
Riesling fans frequently wonder why a variety that makes some of the greatest wines in the world remains so underrated.
Events like In Praise of Riesling, the massive amount of column inches devoted to it by us riesling-mad wine journos, and the efforts of the likes of the International Riesling Foundation may start to change views.
Until then, this will remain another of riesling's many paradoxes.
RAVISHING RIESLINGS
SUGAR AND SPICE
Dr Loosen Urziger Wurzgarten Riesling Kabinett Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Germany
$29.95
A great example of a riesling that really shows the signature of the vineyard in which it's grown. The Wurzgarten (spice garden) consistently produces rieslings with an unmistakably spicy note, which in this delicate and minerally example from Mosel-maestro Dr Urziger, is joined by apricots and a zingy lemon acidity that expertly balances its sweetness.
From Caro's, First Glass.
RICH BUT DRY
Pegasus Bay Waipara Dry Riesling 2007
$26.95
While Pegasus Bay has become known for its excellent off-dry riesling, this is the second vintage and the first commercial release of a dry style. Made from the ripest grapes, it avoids the austerity found in some young dry rieslings, offering a rich and concentrated expression with fleshy apricot fruit, exotic spice, mineral notes and plenty of grapefruit bite.
From Fine Wine Delivery Company, Caro's, La Barrique, Wine Vault, Point Wines, First Glass.
DELICIOUS DEBUT
Floating Mountain Maukatere Waipara Riesling 2007
$22.95
This is the first riesling from Waipara's Floating Mountain since the winery was bought by the new Dancing Water label last year and it's a promising start. A fresh off-dry example with soft peach, mandarin and ginger spice over a citrus mineral core.
From Bacchus Cellars, Wine Vault, Primo Vino Hamilton.
