Riesling is the wine I recommend most often to people who say they don’t like white wine, which I realize sounds paradoxical. The thing is, most of the white wines they’ve tried have been either too neutral (generic Pinot Grigio) or too heavy and oaky (California Chardonnay). Riesling is neither. It has a personality — aromatic, expressive, alive with acidity — that makes it genuinely interesting regardless of where it falls on the sweetness spectrum. A bone-dry German Riesling Spätlese and a luscious Trockenbeerenauslese are both recognizably the same grape, which is a kind of magic not many varieties can claim.
Where Riesling Came From
The oldest documented mention of Riesling dates to 1435 in a storage inventory from Rheingau, Germany. It’s a German grape through and through — the Rhine and Mosel river valleys are its spiritual home, and the combination of steep slate slopes, cool temperatures, and the moderating influence of the rivers creates conditions that suit it better than almost anywhere else. The slate soils absorb heat during the day and release it slowly at night, helping grapes ripen steadily in a climate that might otherwise be too cool. This slow, even ripening is exactly what builds Riesling’s complex aromatic profile while preserving its signature acidity.
From Germany it spread to Alsace in France, where the drier climate produces a more full-bodied style. Then to Austria, Australia’s Clare and Eden Valleys, New Zealand, Washington State, and New York’s Finger Lakes. Each region puts its own stamp on the grape, but the thread connecting them all is that vibrating acidity that makes the wine feel alive.
The Flavor Profile
Young Riesling typically shows green apple, pear, peach, and apricot — with a citrus element (lemon, lime, grapefruit) that’s more pronounced in cooler climates. There’s usually a floral note, sometimes white flowers, sometimes something more like orange blossom. Minerality is often discussed with Riesling, and it’s real — especially in German Mosel wines, where there’s a wet slate or flint quality that’s unmistakable and hard to attribute to anything other than the soil.
The distinctive thing that happens to Riesling with age is the development of petrol or diesel notes — a hydrocarbon character that sounds alarming until you encounter it in a 15-year-old German Auslese and realize it’s one of the most compelling things you’ve ever smelled in a wine glass. Not everyone loves it, but wine people tend to seek it out. Underneath the petrol, there’s concentrated honey, dried apricot, and a complexity that dry wines rarely achieve.
Understanding the German Sweetness Scale
Germany’s Prädikatswein system categorizes Riesling (and other grapes) by the ripeness level of the grapes at harvest, which generally corresponds to sweetness in the finished wine — though not always, since some producers ferment drier wines from riper grapes.
Kabinett is the lightest and most delicate level — often just barely off-dry, with high acidity and relatively low alcohol. Spätlese (late harvest) means riper grapes and typically more pronounced fruit with a touch of sweetness. Auslese is made from selectively picked grapes that are riper or partially botrytized, producing richer, more honeyed wines. Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese are made from individually selected overripe or botrytized grapes — extremely concentrated, naturally sweet, and produced only in exceptional years. These are among the most age-worthy white wines in the world.
The important thing to know is that “Spätlese” doesn’t automatically mean sweet — a Spätlese Trocken (dry) is made from late-harvest grapes fermented to dryness. The label tells you the ripeness of the grapes, not necessarily the sweetness of the wine. This confuses people, which is partly why Riesling has an accessibility problem despite being an extraordinary grape.
Regions to Know
Mosel produces the lightest, most delicate German Riesling — low alcohol (often 8–9%), pale gold in color, with slate-driven minerality and precision acidity. These are the wines I’d start with if I were introducing someone to the style. Producers like Egon Müller, J.J. Prüm, and Weingut Dr. Loosen make wines that represent the benchmark.
Rheingau tends toward richer, fuller-bodied Riesling with more obvious structure. Alsace Riesling is drier and more substantial — fuller body, higher alcohol, less sweetness, though the grape’s aromatic intensity remains. Australian Clare Valley Riesling is typically bone dry with intense lime and citrus, often with a tight minerality that makes them excellent candidates for aging despite their austere youth.
Washington State and the Finger Lakes in New York are doing interesting things with Riesling, particularly the latter, where the climate resembles cool German growing conditions and the best producers are making wines with real depth.
Food Pairings
Riesling’s versatility with food is its other great virtue. Dry Riesling with white fish, shellfish, and light salads is the obvious pairing and it works beautifully. Off-dry Riesling with spicy food — Thai, Indian, Sichuan — is one of the great pairings in all of gastronomy. The residual sugar dampens the heat perception while the acidity cuts through fat in coconut milk or sesame-based sauces. Sweet Riesling with blue cheese is a classic (the salt-sweet contrast works the same way it does with Port and Stilton), and with apple and pear desserts it’s almost unfairly good.
The principle: whatever sweetness level you’re choosing, Riesling’s acidity keeps the wine from cloying and keeps the food pairing from feeling heavy. It’s the most food-friendly white wine family there is.
Storage and Serving
Young dry Riesling: serve at 45–50°F and drink within 3–5 years. Off-dry and sweet Riesling from good producers: serve at 43–47°F and consider aging 10–20+ years. Auslese and above from top producers can develop for decades. Store in a cool, dark place at consistent temperature; the acidity in Riesling protects it during aging in ways that lower-acid whites can’t manage.
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