What sorts of white wine do you like?

Our supermarkets have extensive cheese sections too. Even in small towns.

 

That may be.
But I am not.
Of course on can go off topic now and then.

But if the other topic takes over the whole thread for a long time or even forever, then that is too much.
One can then say that the thread has been "hi-jacked".
I think that is something that you would not want either.

 

Here are three types of German wines:

trocken = dry
halb-trocken = half dry or demi-sec
lieblich = "lovely" = a bit on the sweet side

Of course there are also more types

 

Try a bottle of a good Pouilly-Fuissé. Like this one, for example (about $50):



If you do, I'm sure you'll come back here and say "OK, I finally found a Chardonnay that I like."

 

7 x Riesling
2 x Chardonnay

Yes, Riesling is the king of the white wines!

 

I like most any dry white wine. Not a fan of sweet wines, except Tokaji

 

These are all grape varierties - in German: Rebsorten - in French: cépages

Whether a wine is sweet or dry does not depend on the grape variety.

The question here is not: "Do you like sweet or dry?"

The quesion is: "Which grape variety or cépage or Rebsorte do you like?"

 

I say: ABC

Anything but Chardonnay!

 

If you like Riesling, as do I, you should probably try some from its German birthplace. But don't expect it to taste the same as the Chateau St. Michelle. The Riesling grape really expresses on the terroir of the place it is grown, so Washington Riesling will be distinctly different from Australian Riesling, both of which will differ from the many shadings of that wine, produced in different parts of Germany.

Here is a short article on the variability of that wine.

https://germanwineusa.com/riesling-...ctares planted,world from Australia to Oregon.

<Snip>

Riesling’s homeland of Germany checks all the boxes of an ideal Riesling region. As such, Riesling is grown in all 13 of the country’s wine regions, and it’s the world’s largest producer of Riesling.

Among the most northerly winegrowing areas in the world, Germany is considered a “cool climate” region. Compared to most winemaking countries, Germany’s vineyards receive less sunshine during the growing season and see lower average temperatures. The bulk of rainfall occurs in the summer and declines during the final stages of ripening, opposite of typical precipitation patterns in much of southern Europe.

Slow to mature, Riesling is predestined for regions where it can finish ripening completely under the autumn sun, benefitting from nutrients in the soil and developing its characteristic minerality and well-balanced acidity.

Riesling is able to thrive in a wide range of soils, but heat-retaining, stony soils on steep, south-facing sites along river valleys provide optimal conditions, such as those found along the rolling hills and valleys of the Rhine River and its tributaries.

A “typical” German Riesling is pale greenish yellow to light golden yellow in color, light to medium-bodied and has a pronounced acidity and relatively low ABV. Common aromas and flavors include green apple, peach, and lime.

On the Mosel’s cool-climate steep sloped vineyards, Riesling is typically delicate and intensely mineral, partially from the slate soil it’s grown on. Young wines might smell of flint stone, and mature growths can show interesting petrol notes. While gasoline and wine may sound like an odd match, wine aficionados celebrate and seek out this quality in German Riesling!

Germany’s Rheingau region is known for more fuller-bodied Riesling with structured acidity, while Rheinhessen directly south yields Riesling with more mild acidity, medium body, and stone fruit flavors. Further south in the warm, dry Pfalz, you’ll find refreshing fuller-bodied Riesling with flavors of orchard fruit and earthy and spicy elements.

With age, German Riesling can evolve to express honeycomb, beeswax, earthy spices, and candied fruit
<End Snip>


The article calls the Washington & Oregon Rieslings off-dry, easy drinking, with floral & tropical flavors, higher in acidity than other varietals grown in those regions (those coming from the Columbia Valley, being especially crisp). From that description, you may want to start with an Alsatian Riesling (French, from the region of Alsace Lorraine, which spans both countries):

<Snip>
The French region of Alsace is located just across Germany’s southwest border. It grows many of the same grapes as wine regions in Germany, just across the Rhine River. As such, the Riesling of this region shares many similarities with German Riesling – aromatic and expressive with high acidity and steely minerality.

That said, the climate is warmer and drier, and aromas of Alsatian Riesling are more floral. They also tend to be higher in alcohol content and are sometimes described as creamier in texture. The wines are typically dry or off-dry and racy with fuller body, but they are also produced in sweeter styles as well.
<End Snip>

I bolded those aspects I thought might appeal to you (for the higher alcohol content, underlined, I was just taking a shot in the dark). For me, though, it is the common traits with the German Riesling-- the acidity & steely minerality-- which sound most appealing. In fact, if you drink Sauvignon Blanc, and are curious about minerality, I would suggest you try a French Sancerre, which is renowned for this distinctive characteristic.

I don't know if I've ever tried one, but the description given for Austrian Riesling, will put it on my radar, for the future:

<Snip>

Austrian Riesling is known to be dry and clean with relatively higher alcohol content, a fuller body, and a long finish, and more tropical and intense than German Riesling. Like many areas in Germany, the best sites in the Wachau, Austria’s most renowned winemaking region, are the steep, terraced, south-facing slopes of the river valley. Riesling also flourishes on similarly steep terraces and riverbanks in Kamptal and Kremstal.
<End Snip>

The article likewise calls the Rieslings of warm Australia, higher in alcohol content, and fuller bodied than the average German ones. The texture, it says, is sometimes described as "oily." This reminds me of the "gasoline" description, above, of the Mosel region Rieslings, though thicker, as the vines for the Australian plantings came from Rheingau, known for the fuller bodied wine, they produce.

The flavors noted, also make me think of Sauv. Blanc, but from New Zealand-- "Australian Rieslings are especially known for lime and lemon flavors, as well as white flower, orange blossom, and tropical fruit."

 

That wouldn't be because this particular varietal, is the one we most excel at producing, in the U.S.-- specifically in California (particularly in Sonoma & Napa)-- would it?