Collection: Riesling

Riesling is a white grape that can produce everything from bone-dry to sweet wine, and Germany is its largest home. Our selection is German and comes from Mosel, Rheingau and Baden, with dry wines from classified top vineyards, Kabinett and Auslese with fruit sweetness, older vintages and an alcohol-free alternative.

Where does Riesling come from?

Riesling has its roots on the Rhine and is traditionally grown in the valleys along the Rhine and Mosel. According to Deutsches Weininstitut, around half of the world's Riesling vineyards are located in Germany, roughly 24,000 hectares, and the grape is grown in all 13 German wine regions. The oldest known written mention is an invoice from 1435 for Riesling cuttings to be planted at a castle in Rüsselsheim close to Hochheim in Rheingau. Riesling develops many of its aromas late in ripening and therefore thrives best in a cool climate with a long growing season. Outside Germany, Austria and Alsace are classic areas, and the grape is today also grown in, among other places, the USA, Australia and New Zealand.

Is Riesling sweet or dry?

Both. Common to all styles is a pronounced and fresh acidity that provides balance, even when the wine has residual sweetness. If the label says trocken, the wine is dry with at most nine grams of residual sugar per litre. Halbtrocken and feinherb are used for off-dry wines. With a few years of bottle ageing, a Spätlese or Auslese can also taste drier, because the sweetness and acidity come together. In our selection you will find both dry wines and wines with clear fruit sweetness, so look for the sweetness in the description of the individual wine.

What do Kabinett, Spätlese, Auslese and GG mean?

Kabinett, Spätlese and Auslese are Prädikat levels, which in German wine law are determined by the sugar content of the grapes at harvest. They therefore say something about ripeness and not necessarily about the sweetness of the finished wine, and terms such as Spätlese are used for several taste styles. Among the producers in the VDP association the system is stricter. Here GG, Grosses Gewächs, is always a dry wine from a VDP.Grosse Lage, the association's highest classified vineyards, and it is recognised by the GG logo embossed in the bottle. Wines with fruit sweetness from the same vineyards instead carry Prädikat terms such as Kabinett, Spätlese and Auslese. Erste Lage is the level below Grosse Lage.

What does Riesling pair with?

Deutsches Weininstitut suggests the dry and simple wines as an aperitif and with soup, vegetarian dishes and grilled poultry, pork or fish. Off-dry and lightly sweet wines pair with spicy and sweet-and-sour food, for example from Asian cuisine, and with dishes featuring soy sauce or salty marinades. The sweet Auslese pairs with pâté, blue cheese and desserts.

How does Riesling taste, and how long can it be kept?

Riesling can smell of citrus and crisp apple or of ripe peach and tropical fruit, often with a mineral, herbal or spicy character. With age, more nuances emerge, and noble rot can give honey tones. Deutsches Weininstitut gives as a rule of thumb that Kabinett can keep for up to five years, Spätlese three to ten years and Auslese at least a decade, when the wine is stored cool, dark and lying down. If you want to know more about the grape and the German regions, you can read our guide to Riesling or continue to our wines from Germany and the broader selection of white wine.