Well, news from the International Riesling Foundation of the development of a 'taste scale' for Riesling will perhaps pave the way for a new generation of Riesling lovers, that is once the i's are dotted and the t's crossed and the taste scale is adopted by every serious riesling producer - and hopefully the non-serious as well.
This from a news release from the IRF ...
'The first stage of the project was to identify appropriate terms for describing the relative dryness or sweetness of the wine. After extensive deliberations, the five categories selected are: Dry, Off-Dry, Medium Dry, Medium Sweet, and Sweet.
To help wine makers consider which terms to use for various wines, the committee developed a technical chart of parameters involving the interplay of sugar, acid, and pH which helps determine the probable taste profile of a particular wine.
“It is important to understand that these are simply recommended guidelines which we think may be helpful, but the program is entirely voluntary,” said (Dan) Berger. “We hope that over time many Riesling producers will use the system because it will help consumers, and therefore help the wineries as well.”
The next step is to develop a simple graphic design showing the five levels from Dry to Sweet, and a simple indication of where a particular wine falls. This design may be used on back labels, merchandising materials, web sites and elsewhere. The goal is to have a common, simple, consumer-friendly system for identifying Riesling tastes.
“This is a very important project, and we’re grateful to Dan Berger and others who have spent many hours on this,” said Jim Trezise, the current President of the IRF. “With Riesling’s surging popularity, making this versatile wine more understandable for consumers could accelerate its growth.”
The Riesling Taste Scale was first announced publicly on July 27 at the Riesling Rendezvous at Chateau Ste. Michelle in Woodinville, Washington to Riesling producers from around the world. Full details of the taste scale will be made public when the other steps are completed in the near future.
Cheers,
Sue