Wine Blogging Wednesday #45 Old World Riesling

The wine for this Wine Blogging Wednesday #45 is the second wine in my WBW blogger pack from Domaine547. This months WBW topic was supplied by Tim at Winecast and was any Riesling from the “Old World.” The blogger pack Riesling was the 2006 Max Ferd Richter “Graf Zeppelin” from Mosel – Saar – Ruwer.  From the winery website, the history of the title of this wine, “Graf Zeppelin” is that is was the wine poured most on Zeppelin flights during the 20’s and 30’s. The grapes from this wine are grown in the Mülheimer Sonnenlay vineyard which consists of soil composed of gray slate soil resting on steep slopes along the Mosel river.  We ate this today (WBW) with General Tso’s “Chik’n” and it paired nicely being slightly off-dry counteracting the spiciness of the dish.

 

My Tasting Notes

Nose – Petroleum, rubber, pear

Taste – Fuji apple, pear, citrus, petrol, honey

Mouthfeel – medium viscous body, touch of sweetness

Finish – clean, long with mineral and honey flavors

 

This was a fun textbook Riesling that was a great pairing for the Chinese food. Classic food friendly flavors, a hint of sweetness and great viscosity on the palate would make this great for any spicy dish.

 

Thanks again to Tim for a great May WBW topic.

 

Cheers!

 

Germany meets India

Germany met India on my palate with the 2005 Bert Simon Serrig Herrenberg Riesling Kabinett.

This wine comes from the Mosel-Saar-Ruwer region of Germany.  Deciphering the label a bit more, it comes from the Saar valley in the village of Serrig and the vineyard Herrenberg.  An interesting side note for all you fans of the 3 word name for this famous region. From now on it is going to be called Mosel, which the German government thinks will be easier for wine consumers to understand. Now I just feel bad for Saar and Ruwer getting dropped off the end like that, their river valleys are just as nice. haha

On to the wine – 

Color – Golden

Nose – Floral, pear, apricot

Taste – Honey, Petroleum, citrus, lime, hint of sweetness

Mouthfeel – Nice & round, medium to full body with soft acidity

Finish – pure clean mineral notes that persisted for quite a while

We had this wine with one of our Indian dishes, Dopiaza. Although we put more veggies in it than you would find in the traditional dish, the sauce still tastes the same.  The wine was an excellent pairing for the slight heat of the food, with the floral nose and the hint of citrus and honey on the palate to really accentuate the south Indian flavors in the food.  The clean mineral finish really left the mouth ready for the next bite of naan and tofu, drenched in Dopiaza sauce.  This is an excellent buy at $18, although I understand that the 2005 is the last vintage that Bert Simon will be making wine.  If anyone can verify this for me, please let me know.

Cheers!