Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Dry Riesling comes in with seven grams per liter of residual sugar, 7.4 of total acidity and 12.1% alcohol. This Dry Riesling is full-bodied, very concentrated for the level and perfectly balanced. I've been saying that Dry Riesling may be the region's signature wine value, and this is another example. This hits all the right notes: mouth-coating, dry but not austere, ageworthy. Granting that I do not have them all here, it wasn't quite as focused, as bright or as intense as in some years, like 2014, but it does very well. It is worth leaning up for the moment, while we see what happens in the bottle. It is still very young and it should become expressive in six to 12 months. Sourced from 20-year-old vines in the Martini Family vineyard,
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.
Increasingly garnering widespread and well-deserved attention, New York ranks third in wine production in the United States (after California and Washington). Divided into six AVAs—the Finger Lakes, Lake Erie, Hudson River, Long Island, Champlain Valley of New York and the Niagara Escarpment, which crosses over into Michigan as well as Ontario, Canada—the state experiences varied climates, but in general summers are warm and humid while winters are very cold and can carry the risk of frost well into the growing season.
The Finger Lakes region has long been responsible for some of the country’s finest Riesling, and is gaining traction with elegant, light-bodied Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc. Experimentation with cold-hardy European varieties is common, and recent years have seen the successful planting of grapes like Grüner Veltliner and Saperavi (from the Eastern European country of Georgia). Long Island, on the other hand, has a more maritime climate influenced by the Atlantic Ocean, and shares some viticultural characteristics with Bordeaux. Accordingly, the best wines here are made from Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The Niagara Escarpment is responsible for excellent ice wines, usually made from the hybrid variety, Vidal.