• About
    • Board of Directors
  • Friends
    • Be a Friend
    • Contribution Form
  • Riesling Taste Profile
    • Riesling Sugar Guidelines
    • Use of Taste Profile
    • Taste Profile Design Standards
    • Vector EPS of Taste Profile
  • About Riesling
  • Regions
  • News/Events
    • Recent Riesling Press
  • Resources
  • Contact

All About Riesling

Meet the World’s Most Noble Grape

Originating in Germany hundreds of years ago, Riesling today is grown in regions around the globe and is one of the world’s fastest growing varieties.

It’s easy to see why. A favorite of chefs, sommeliers and wine professionals everywhere, it is aromatic, food-friendly and filled with personality. In all the world, no other wine so deftly reflects its soil and region.

Here are just a few reasons to love Riesling:

  • Versatile — Riesling comes in a mouthwatering array of flavor profiles. From dry to medium dry to medium sweet to sweet, Riesling offers a pleasing taste for every palate.
  • Food friendly — Riesling is the ultimate food-pairing wine, with options for every cuisine. Dry Rieslings are well suited to shellfish and classic preparations of fish, pork and poultry as well as cream sauces. Medium dry Rieslings are terrific with spicy Asian/fusion cuisine, smoked fish and salty cheeses. Medium sweet Rieslings pair beautifully with rich, spicy Indian dishes or dishes featuring fresh fruits. Sweet Rieslings are wonderful with salty blue cheeses, fruit desserts and foie gras.
  • Evocative — More than any other grape, Riesling takes on the character of the soil and climate where it is grown. Some will say it does so almost down to individual vines!
  • Easy sipping — Medium dry and medium sweet Rieslings have lower alcohol levels than other wines. When combined with well-balanced acidity, that makes them perfect for sipping in hot weather and for serving at parties in all seasons.
  • Fine aging — Many fine Rieslings will cellar beautifully and for much longer than other wines. They only grow more concentrated and complex with age.

Whether you are new to Riesling or already an affirmed fan of the noble grape, we encourage you to explore different Rieslings in different flavor profiles from a variety of regions around the globe. You will find options to keep you happily exploring for a lifetime!

The IRF Riesling Taste Profile

 

taste_scale_no_arrow_small

 

 

Dry, medium dry, medium sweet or sweet? Riesling comes in such a wide range of styles, it helps to have a guide!

That’s why we developed the IRF Riesling Taste Profile, an easy-to-read indicator of where a wine fits on the dry-to-sweet scale.

Based on IRF guidelines for the interplay of sugar, acid and pH, winemakers calculate where to place the arrow on the profile for use on the back label to help consumers choose the Riesling that best matches their taste.

MORE ABOUT THE RIESLING TASTE PROFILE

Learn More

 

What’s All This Talk of Minerality?

Characteristics, Flavors and Aromas

Riesling Renaissance: America

Riesling Origins: Germany

Global Riesling Case Production

Better with Age

Riesling’s Wondrous Character

Beauty in Balance: Sweetness to Acidity

The Noblest White Grape and Terroir

Keep Your Enemies Closer…to Riesling

Riesling: Vine to Glass

Screwcap or Cork?

Dessert Rieslings and Noble Rot

“Petrol” and Riesling

Follow Us

Find us on Facebook and Twitter

Latest Tweets

Tweets by @drink_riesling

Subscribe

Sign up for our Newsletter



Copyright 2008-2018 International Riesling Foundation. Contact Us