Riesling

Riesling is an aromatic white grape native to the Rhine valley of Germany, prized for its piercing natural acidity, flowery perfume and uncanny ability to mirror the place it grows. It is made across the full sweetness spectrum — from bone-dry (trocken) through off-dry to lusciously sweet late-harvest and ice wines — almost always unoaked, so the fruit and minerality show through undisguised. Lower in alcohol than most white grapes, it ages superbly, developing a famous petrol-like note over years in the cellar. Critics routinely rank it among the top three white grapes in the world alongside Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.