How-To: Pick A Bottle of Riesling

The Riesling grape is flexible and offers itself to a wide range of styles of wine. How do you select the best Riesling for you?

• If you are looking for an easy drinking wine to enjoy by the glass on a warm summer day, you might look for a Dry Riesling. Its crisp quality will feel refreshing in the oppressive heat.
• If you are looking for something to enjoy with a dinner, a Semi-Dry Riesling might serve you well. These wines balance the crisp acidity with the sweetness in the grapes to create a more versatile wine.
• If you are looking for something to accompany dessert, select a Sweet Riesling. Or, skip the dessert altogether and opt for a very sweet Dessert Riesling (often called Late Harvest or Beerenauslese Riesling).

Look for the scale found on many Riesling bottles that indicates the level of sweetness in that particular Riesling wine.