December Sweet Club: Iowa

Sweet Wine ClubSchloss-Vollrads_QbA_Riesling-BottleShot-bowSchloss Vollrads Estate
Qualitätswein Rheingau
Riesling
Oestrich-Winkel, Germany

NECTAR WINE STYLE

It doesn’t always have to be dry! This Riesling captivates the palate with its full fruit aroma of yellow apples, vineyard peach and white blossoms. With its well-balanced sweetness and acidity, this wine is a real pleasure to drink. Tastes great solo or with spicy, hot dishes.

Varietal: Reisling
Analysis:
9% alcohol / volume
Residual Sugar: 40.7 g/L
Total Acidity: 8.8 g/L
Quality Level: Qualitätswein b.A.
Region: Rheingau, Germany
Winemaker: Ralf Bengel and team
Vinification: 100% Stainless Steel Vinification
Serving Suggestion: A suitable complement to Spicy Asian dishes (soup meat or stir-fry). Well chilled, it also makes an excellent aperitif.

WineStyles’ Wine and Cheese Pairing: Pair with a mild blue cheese to complement the fruity notes of this wine. Learn more about our wine and cheese pairings here.

Terroir: The soil is a mixture of Taunus quartzite, argillaceous shale and calcareous loess soil. Their vineyard slopes are all south facing, allowing them to capture the best sunshine. The Taunus mountain range offers protection from the northern winds with its forests and creates the ideal conditions for their vines.

Vintage/Winemakers Notes: A great comeback of classic Rheingau Riesling. Schloss Vollrads were able to harvest twice in 2021, once in February and once in October. Sounds unusual but it was not due to climate change. It was due to the fact that they were able to conclude the 2020 vintage with an ice wine harvest on February 10, 2021, a chilly day with -9° C, the Riesling ice wine 2020 was harvested with a good must weight of 189 degree Oechsle. As the year progressed, the weather in 2021 turned out to be very capricious and unpredictable. After three exceptionally hot and dry years, it was finally humid and cooler in 2021. As a result, they had a long winter and a cool spring, which led to a late bud break in the end of April. Humid weather, frequent rain and only a few bright sunny days summed up the weather in summer. Vineyard employees were challenged, and through their enormous effort, they had ensured that losses due to mildew could be avoided. Due to the late bud break, ripening also began later than in previous years, in the last days of August. The grapes had taken their time and the harvest did not begin until October.  Which is a convenient time, because the ripening phase at cooler temperatures allows the Riesling grapes to develop a finely fruity aroma, and the wines can develop into the typical Riesling elegance and filigree.   With a hard-working harvest, the grape quality had developed to the ideal level of Kabinett and Spätlese. With a selective harvest technique, they were able to harvest the vineyards at the right time. The grapes from their prestige sites could be characterized with abundant and mesmerizing aromas, it was then, again with experienced harvest hands, the grapes were carefully selected and picked.

Photo and Information courtesy of © Schloss Vollrads Estate – All Rights Reserved


Sweet ClubLove the Sweet life?
“Wine” not try our Sweet Club! 

Click here to learn more >

 

 

October Sweet Club Iowa

 

Sweet Wine ClubWilli Haag Juffer RieslingWilli Haag
Juffer Brauneberg Auslese
Grosse Lage Riesling
Mosel, Germany

NECTAR WINE STYLE

Honeysuckle and crushed minerals give a modest introduction to this light-footed Auslese (select harvest) wine. The palate is bursting with ripe flavors of yellow-peach and pineapple. The wine’s sharp, zippy acidity lends balanced to a long finish.

Analysis: 8.5% alcohol / volume
Varietal:
Riesling
Region: Brauneberg, Mosel, Germany
Critical Acclaim: 91 points – Wine Enthusiast

WineStyles Wine and Cheese Pairing: Sweet wines from our ‘Nectar’ section also pair well with an herbal cheese. Learn more about our wine and cheese pairings here.

ABOUT THE WINERY:
The Willi Haag Estate has been in the family more than 500 years – now run by Marcus Haag, the grandson of Willi Haag. Marcus took over the entire management in 1997 after completing his viniculture studies. Today, Marcus combines his family’s wine-making traditions with modern viniculture approaches to produce award winning wines.
 Learn more about the winery and its vineyards here.


Sweet ClubLove the Sweet life?
“Wine” not try our Sweet Club! 

Click here to learn more >

 

 

Summer Wine Tips

DougFrostInterview with Doug Frost, Master of Wine and Master Sommelier

What wines or sparkling wines do you advise people to select to enjoy over the summer?
First off, I always insist that people should drink whatever they like, and stop worrying about the “right” wine, whatever that is. As the temperature rises, most are thinking of cool, refreshing drinks, and that leaves lots of wine options. For reasonably priced bubbly, Prosecco from Italy and Cava from Spain have been the go-to wines for years. I’m a big German wine fan, and I go through lots of German Rieslings during the summer. The tangy, incipient tartness of Riesling is ideal for a touch of fruity sweetness. When you add that to spicy foods and even tangy BBQ sauces, it’s a surprisingly adept grape.

What white wines do you suggest to pair with popular summertime dishes?
If people use lighter vinaigrettes for their salads, crisp and tangy wines are just ideal. Sauvignon Blanc, Albarino and many Italian white wines make a lovely marriage, especially when you toss some grilled shrimp, fish or chicken on top of the salad.
Grill marks have a certain bitterness, even when they appear on grilled vegetables. Try either a fruity wine to offset the grill marks and the smoke (something fruity like Beaujolais, Dolcetto or Barbera) or use a wine that has a bit of bitterness, like more astringent Italian reds (Sagrantino, Sangiovese or Nebbiolo).

What are your tips for storing wine during the summer months?
Make sure never to leave wine bottles in a hot car. Heat can damage a wine in only a few minutes. If it’s too warm to leave your beloved pet in the car, don’t leave your favorite bottle of wine, either.