Wagner Vineyards Dry Riesling 2016
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Robert
Parker
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An elegant enhancement for seafood, chicken and other light meals.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Dry Riesling comes in with 5.8 grams per liter of residual sugar, 7.8 of total acidity and 12.9% alcohol. A stunning value, this is concentrated and powerful, dry but not austere, with a long and balanced finish. This overachiever expresses the grape well and also has the structure to develop in the bottle. It will improve with some time in the bottle. There were a remarkable 2,050 cases produced. With that availability, this price and this quality, one of them has your name on it. Even if it does not develop quite as well as I hope, there's no risk at this price.
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Wagner is one of the Finger Lakes Region’s few estate wineries, which means that we grow all of the grapes used to produce our wine. We cultivate 20 grape varieties on 250 acres, all adjacent to or within a few miles of the winery.
The winery's prime location on the eastern shore of Seneca Lake contributes to the superior quality of the grapes. The unique combination of deep water (parts of Seneca Lake are over 600 feet deep) and sloping hillside provides a natural temperature moderator, protecting the vines against extreme temperature changes.
Riesling possesses a remarkable ability to reflect the character of wherever it is grown while still maintaining its identity. A regal variety of incredible purity and precision, this versatile grape can be just as enjoyable dry or sweet, young or old, still or sparkling and can age longer than nearly any other white variety. Somm Secret—Given how difficult it is to discern the level of sweetness in a Riesling from the label, here are some clues to find the dry ones. First, look for the world “trocken.” (“Halbtrocken” or “feinherb” mean off-dry.) Also a higher abv usually indicates a drier Riesling.
As the most historic wine-producing region in New York state, winemaking in the Finger Lakes area dates back to the 1820s and today as a region, accounts for 90% of the state’s total wine production.
Its narrow and deep lakes created by the movement of Ice Age glaciers create an environment similar to the classic Riesling-loving regions of Europe, namely Germany and Austria. The Finger Lakes retain summer heat that incidentally warms up cold winter air, making it fall down from the lakes’ steep slopes. When spring comes, the lakes, already cooled by cold winter weather, stave off vine budding until the danger of frost has subsided. The main lakes of the zone, that is those big enough to moderate the climate in this way, are the focal points of prime vineyard areas. They include Canandaigua, Keuka, Seneca and Cayuga.
While Riesling has fueled most of the region’s success, today Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc enjoy some attention.