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Hippiekinkster -> RE: The alcohol thread. (1/30/2012 6:10:43 PM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: kalikshama
quote:
I very much like Alsatian and Austrian Rieslings
I tried a Riesling from Alsace once and as it was nowhere near as sweet as German, never again. Is this typical for Alsatian?
Frequently. Alsatian Rieslings are usually fermented to dryness; the Riesling grape ripens the slowest of all the Alsatian grape varieties, and hence has lower levels of sugar when pressed. In fact, many producers Chaptalize their lower-level wines to bring the alcohol levels up.
You'll get more sweetness in the Gewürtztraminers, Tokay-Pinot Gris (pinot Grigio), Muscats, and Auxerrois (I first ran across this grape variety in Luxembourg). The Grand Cru vineyards are your best bets for sweeter Rieslings. Vendange Tardive (Late harvest) and Selection des Graines Nobles (grapes with Botrytis) are the equivalents of Auslesen and Beerenauslesen/Trockenbeerenauslesen, respectively.
Your best bets, as I remember, for sweeter Alsace wines are Bott-Geyl, Schlumberger, and Josmeyer. I carried back 6 500ml bottles of a killer Gewurtz Late Harvest from Pierre Sparr in Sigolsheim. They became part of a Thanksgiving tradtion we had; we'd pop a German Beerenauslese, and a couple bottles of whatever other stickies we had. The gewurzes were about 5 years old when I bought them, and had this beautiful deep golden hue. I might even have some notes around; pretty sure I kept a label.
Ontario makes some excellent Late Harvest and Icewines.
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