Slideshow

Riesling Masters 2018: the results in full

30 January 2019 By Patrick Schmitt

We reveal all the medallist from 2018’s Riesling Masters, in which one country triumphed, particularly for its bone dry expressions.

As one of the world’s most misunderstood grapes, Riesling always makes an intriguing choice for any blind tasting. With this in mind, the judges for 2018’s Riesling Masters arrived for the latest sampling with excited anticipation, wondering what makes this grape so divisive, where one finds the best expressions, and at what prices.

Following a day spent assessing more than 100 examples from around the world, one thing is for sure: this is a white grape that’s rich in personality. With characters ranging from pungent floral aromatics to notes of burnt rubber, and flavours from intense lime to juicy peach, not only does Riesling vary in nature, but it is always distinctive.

Add to this a broad range in textures thanks to different residual sugar levels, and one can understand why consumers can struggle with Riesling. Unless one understands the German wine law, and its terminology, and knows the producer, it is hard to tell what the wine will taste like without trying it.

But let’s not forget this grape’s place as the darling of the wine trade. While it’s common to hear consumers express their dislike for Riesling, never have I heard a professional profess anything other than a deep affection for the grape.

This is because, at its best, this single variety can deliver so much: something packed with layers of flavour, but a palate-cleansing freshness that’s unique in wine.

It is the pure citrus acidity of Riesling that makes it such a great base for sweet wines. Or, if bone dry, a drink that can be kept for decades, revealing a honeyed richness, even where no sugar is present.

Australia rules

If we look at the results from the competition, there is one country that dominates. Despite the extremely strong association of Riesling and Germany – to the extent that it is virtually assumed that all white wine from this country is made with this single grape – it is Australia that has become the most prevalent source of medal-winning Riesling.

But there is one caveat. I’m talking about bone-dry Riesling. If you look at the results for Rieslings in the category of wines with 4g/l or lower, you will see that Australia is pre-eminent.

There are medallists from Alsace, New Zealand, Germany – particularly the warmer Baden region – and even one for Turkey (from the first-rate Chamlija winery), but all the rest have been awarded to Australia. Not only that, but primarily the Eden Valley, followed by the Clare Valley.

Is it safe to say that the best dry Riesling in the world now hails from these two Australian valleys? If your budget is capped at £30, then, I think the answer is ‘yes’ – this part of the world delivers a distinctive, firm, lime-scented vinous refreshment at a price that is unmatched elsewhere.

Go beyond £30, and possibly allow for a touch more residual sugar, and parts of Alsace, and in Germany, the Rheingau especially, one can find more complexity to the Rieslings. But, between £10 and £30, if you favour a very dry style, and you are looking for consistent quality, then Clare and Eden should be your go-to sources of Riesling.

It is doubtless thanks to this that Riesling has no image issues in Australia. Visitors to the country will see that Riesling is commonly featured by the glass in bars and restaurants, and there’s no stigma attached to ordering it, whatever your age or sex. This is because the grape was never the cheap sweet option in this market, and today, one can be assured that when you ask for Riesling, you are ordering a fresh, linear style of white, without the texture of Australia’s better-known export, Chardonnay.

Standouts among the Australian examples were Bird in Hand, McGuigan, Henschke, Wakefield/Taylors, along with pricier Rieslings from Jim Barry Wines and Pike & Joyce. Notably, the sole Master – our ultimate accolade – in this section went to an older vintage, to McGuigan’s Shortlist Riesling from the 2010 harvest, proof that if you can cellar these dry whites, you will be rewarded with something with a touch more textural depth and complexity, as the wine develops some tertiary aromas, from wax to toast.

Moving beyond the bone-dry samples, there are some other producers that deserve to be namechecked. One of the them is Weingut Prinz Von Hessen, for its delicious, pure, fresh but ripe dry Riesling from the Rheingau – and at a very fair sub-£15 retail price. Also, a lovely layered sample from the excellent Alsace co-operative Cave de Ribeauville, with its sub-£20 Grand Cru Osterberg. Then, over £30, and Weingut August Eser wowed the judges with its Grosses Gewaches dry Riesling from the Rheingau, even in its youthful state.

Sweeter styles

When it came to the sweeter styles, two places rose to the top. One of these was Canada’s Niagara Peninsula, where Andrew Peller proved adapt at producing pure, sweet and refreshing Rieslings, and an amazingly concentrated, but bright, Icewine from the 2016 vintage. The other was the Mosel, specifically an example from Reverchon’s Filzener Herrenberg vineyard, which delivered all the power and precision lovers of classic German Riesling so prize.

Tasting, assessing and scoring wines, then debating the results, is an arduous process, but, after a day of Riesling, the judges were full of smiles, and far from fatigued. Indeed, of all noble grapes, Riesling must be the most uplifting.

The judges (left to right): Mark Savage MW, Miles Corish MW, Patrick Schmitt MW, Patricia Stefanowicz MW, David Round MW, Jonathan Pedley MW

The medallists are featured over the following pages, as well as more information about the competition.

Sparkling

Company	Product Name	Region	Country	Vintage	Medal
Under £10
Kessler Sekt	Kessler Riesling Reserve Vintage	Württemberg	Germany	2015	Silver
Kessler Sekt	Kessler Jägergrün Riesling Brut	Rheinhessen	Germany	NV	Silver
£15-£20
Andrew Peller Limited	Sparkling Riesling	Niagara Peninsula	Canada	NV	Silver

Dry (0-4 g/l)

Company	Product Name	Region	Country	Vintage	Medal
Under £10
Aldi	Exquisite Collection Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2017	Silver
Cave de Ribeauvillé	Riesling Collection	Alsace	France	2017	Silver
O’Leary Walker	Watervale Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2017	Silver
£10-£15
Bird in Hand	Bird in Hand Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2018	Gold
Kahurangi Estate	Kahurangi Estate Mt Arthur Reserve	Nelson	New Zealand	2017	Gold
Australian Vintage	McGuigan Cellar Select Riesling	Hilltops	Australia	2018	Silver
Reillys Wines	Reillys Watervale Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2017	Silver
O’Leary Walker Wines	O’Leary Walker Polish Hill River Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2017	Silver
Weingut Sven Nieger	Riesling Trocken	Baden	Germany	2014	Silver
Rockbare	Rockbare Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2018	Silver
Kahurangi Estate	Kahurangi Estate Dry Riesling	Nelson	New Zealand	2018	Silver
Kilikanoon Wines	Mort’s Block Watervale Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2017	Silver
Weingut Sven Nieger	Riesling Umweg Stich Den Buben	Baden	Germany	2014	Silver
Bird in Hand	Bird in Hand Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2013	Bronze
Cave de Ribeuavillé	Riesling Organic	Alsace	France	2017	Bronze
£15-£20
Australian Vintage	McGuigan Shortlist Riesling	Eden Valley	Australia	2010	Master
Henschke Cellars	Peggy’s Hill	Eden Valley	Australia	2018	Gold
Langmeil Winery	Wattle Brae Eden Valley Riesling	Eden Valley	Australia	2018	Silver
Pike and Joyce Wines	Traditionale Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2018	Silver
Chamlija Wines	Riesling	Strandja Mountains	Turkey	2017	Silver
Pernod Ricard Winemakers	Jacob’s Creek Steingarten Riesling	Eden Valley	Australia	2017	Silver
Australian Vintage	McGuigan Shortlist Riesling	Eden Valley	Australia	2018	Silver
Australian Vintage	McGuigan Shortlist Riesling	Eden Valley	Australia	2008	Silver
Woodstock Wine Estate	Mary McTaggart’ Riesling	McLaren Vale	Australia	2017	Bronze
Australian Vintage	McGuigan Shortlist Riesling	Eden Valley	Australia	2017	Bronze
£20-£30
Henschke Cellars	Julius Riesling	Eden Valley	Australia	2018	Gold
Wakefield/Taylors Wines	Reserve Parcel Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2017	Gold
Pernod Ricard Winemakers	St Hugo Eden Valley Riesling	Eden Valley	Australia	2018	Silver
Kilikanoon Wines	Mort’s Reserve Aged Release Watervale	Clare Valley	Australia	2011	Silver
Henschke Cellars	Green’s Hill	Adelaide Hills	Australia	2018	Silver
Weingut Sven Nieger KG	Riesling Ungezähmt	Baden	Germany	2017	Silver
£30-£50
Jim Barry Wines	The Florita	Clare Valley	Australia	2017	Gold
Pike and Joyce Wines	The Merle Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2018	Gold

Medium-dry (5-12 g/l)

Company	Product Name	Region	Country	Vintage	Medal
Under £10
Reh Kendermann	Limestone Riesling	Pfalz	Germany	2017	Silver
Reh Kendermann	Limestone Riesling	Pfalz	Germany	2017	Silver
Reh Kendermann	Riesling vom Löss	Pfalz	Germany	2016	Silver
Weingut Prinz von hessen	Prinz Von Hessen Riesling Trocken	Rheingau	Germany	2017	Silver
Reh Kendermann	Kendermanns Riesling	Pfalz	Germany	2017	Bronze
Vina Cono Sur	Reserva Especial Riesling	Biobío	Chile	2018	Bronze
Reh Kendermann	Riesling von Kalkstein	Pfalz	Germany	2016	Bronze
£10-£15
Weingut Prinz Von Hessen	Johannisberger Riesling	Rheingau	Germany	2017	Gold
Trinchero Family Estates	Charles & Charles Riesling	Washington State	USA	2017	Silver
Weingut Würtzberg	Rotschiefer Riesling	Mosel	Germany	2017	Silver
Arba Wine	Ak Arba Kazakh Riesling	Almatinskaya Oblast	Kazakhstan	2013	Silver
Hiestand	Asia de Cuba	Rhein	Germany	2017	Silver
Byrne Vineyards	Von Rieben Riesling	South Australia	Australia	2016	Silver
Weingut Sven Nieger	Riesling Mauerblümchen	Baden	Germany	2016	Bronze
Bird in Hand	Honeysuckle Riesling	Clare Valley	Australia	2018	Bronze
Kahurangi Estate	Kahurangi Estate Riesling	Nelson	New Zealand	2017	Bronze
Remarkable Wines	Remarkable Dry Riesling	Central Otago	New Zealand	2014	Bronze
£15-£20
Cave de Ribeauvillé	Riesling Grand Cru Osterberg	Alsace	France	2014	Gold
Andrew Peller Limited	Signature Series Riesling	Niagara Peninsula	Canada	2016	Silver
Weingut Reverchon	Ockfener Bockstein Riesling Trocken	Mosel-Saar-Ruwer	Germany	2017	Bronze
Andrew Peller Limited	Signature Series Riesling	Niagara Peninsula	Canada	2015	Bronze
£20-£30
Tertini Wines	Tertini Tasmania Riesling	Tasmania	Australia	2017	Silver
Cantina di La-Vis e Valle di Cembra	Vigna Cancor Riesling Trentino DOC	Trentino	Italy	2016	Bronze
£30-£50
Weingut August Eser	Nussbrunnen GG trocken VDP Grosse Lage	Rheingau	Germany	2017	Master
Weingut August Eser	Doosberg GG trocken VDP Grosse Lage	Rheingau	Germany	2017	Silver

Medium (13-45 g/l)

Company	Product Name	Region	Country	Vintage	Medal
Under £10
Weingut Reverchon	Filzener Herrenberg Riesling Kabinett Feinherb	Mosel-Saar-Ruwer	Germany	2017	Bronze
£10-£15
Andrew Peller Limited	Red Rooster Riesling	Okanagan Valley	Canada	2017	Silver
Andrew Peller Limited	Thirty Bench Winemaker’s Blend Riesling	Niagara Peninsula California	Canada USA	2016 NV	Bronze
Trinchero Family Estates	Sutter Home Riesling	California	USA	NV	Bronze
£15-£20
Andrew Peller Limited	Small Lot Riesling Wood Post Vineyard	Niagara Peninsula	Canada	2016	Gold
Andrew Peller Limited	Andrew Peller Signature Series Riesling	Niagara Peninsula	Canada	2016	Gold
Andrew Peller Limited	Trius Winery Showcase Ghost Creek Vineyard	Niagara Peninsula	Canada	2017	Silver
Andrew Peller Limited	Thirty Bench Wine Makers Small Lot Wild Cask	Niagara Peninsula	Canada	2016	Silver
Andrew Peller Limited	Thirty Bench Wine Makers Small Lot Steel Post Vineyard	Niagara Peninsula	Canada	2016	Bronze

Sweet (+46 g/l)

Company	Product Name	Region	Country	Vintage	Medal
Under £10
Weingut Reverchon	Filzener Herrenberg Spätlese Fruchtig	Mosel-Saar-Ruwer	Germany	2017	Master
Weingut Würtzberg	Serriger Herrenberg Spätlese Riesling	Mosel-Saar-Ruwer	Germany	2017	Silver
Weingut Reverchon	Ockfener Bockstein Spätlese Fruchtig	Mosel-Saar-Ruwer	Germany	2017	Bronze
£15-£20
Weingut Würtzberg	Serriger Herrenberg Riesling Auslese	Mosel-Saar-Ruwer	Germany	2017	Silver
£30-£50
Andrew Peller Limited	Andrew Peller Signature Series Icewine	Niagara Peninsula	Canada	2016	Master

About the Global Riesling Masters

The Riesling Masters is a competition created and run by the drinks business, and is an extension of its successful Masters series for grape varieties such as Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir, as well as regions such as Rioja and Champagne.

The competition is exclusively for Riesling, and the entries were judged using Schott Zwiesel Cru Classic glasses supplied by Wine Sorted.

The top Rieslings were awarded Gold, Silver or Bronze medals according to their result, and those expressions that stood out as being outstanding received the ultimate accolade – the title of Riesling Master.

The wines were tasted on 5 December at the Lady of the Grapes wine bar in Covent Garden, London. This report features the medal-winners only.

The tasting process

All the entries are tasted blind, ensuring that the judges have no knowledge of the identity of each wine beyond its price band and basic style.

Once a score for each wine from every judge has been revealed, and the reasons for the result given, the chair of each judging group will compile an average score, and award medals accordingly.

Each wine is scored on the 100-point scale, with pre-set scoring bands corresponding to the medals awarded, which range from Bronze to Gold, and Master – the ultimate accolade, awarded only to outstanding samples. The judges are told to consider the resulting medal when assigning their score.

The bands are as follows: 85-88 – Bronze; 89-92 – Silver; 93-96 – Gold; 97-100 – Master.

Although the judges are tough, they are accurate and consistent, and the open judging process allows for debate and the revision of initial assessments.

Within the style and price category, the judges are looking for appropriate flavours – be they attributable to the vineyard or the winemaking processes. They are also in search of complexity, intensity and persistence at levels expected of the style and price band. In particular, the judges will reward wines highly if they have both balance and personality.

Thanks to the quality of the judges and the sampling process, the Global Masters provides an unrivalled chance to draw attention to hidden gems, as well as confirm the excellence of the renowned.

For further information please contact any of the team at the drinks business on +44(0)207 803 2420 or email Sophie Raichura at sophie@thedrinksbusiness.com

Judge’s comment: Patricia Stefanowicz MW

“As ever, Riesling confirmed its status as one of the brilliant white grape varieties. Whatever style, whether dry, medium-dry or sweet, these wines demonstrate why Riesling is ‘beloved by the wine trade’.

The integrity and purity of fruit expression in the trocken wines of Germany, the concentration of flavour in the wines of Alsace and the few examples from Austria, the zesty lemon-lime citrus personality of wines from Eden and Clare valleys and the lively flavourful wines from Canada and Washington State show a variety of styles whilst maintaining consistency of high quality. Compact wines, tightly knit.

Balance between concentration of flavour and acidity in the dry wines is a particular joy; balance of fruit, acidity and sugar is generally nicely judged and the Spatlese wines from Germany hit the ‘sweet spot’.

Sparkling wines, albeit a small group, well, glittered like stars with excellent mousse textures, plenty of Riesling character and just the right amount of gentle yeast.

Riesling offers exceptional value, especially in the £10-15 bracket, throughout the different sweetness levels. At £15-20 the wines are even more interesting, layered and complex with intensity of flavour most noticeable in the drier styles. Here the wines from Germany and Alsace and Australia tasted well.

There were also a couple of mid-priced (£10-15) sweet wines that were delicious, a couple showing nuances of noble rot and a little development.

One stunning Canadian Ice Wine (£30-50) demonstrated why the wine world rates these lovely gems so highly.”