Which wines are similar in style to Canadian Niagara Riesling?
Riesling is made in a variety of styles, from dry to very sweet, in one of Canada’s premier winegrowing regions
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Dear Dr. Vinny,
I was recently in the Niagara Lakes area of Canada and sampled a Niagara Riesling. Can you tell me which Rieslings available in the United States will be most similar in flavor profile?
—Ralph, Columbus, Ga.
Dear Ralph,
First things first: Riesling is the name of a grape and the wine made from that grape.
Niagara is the name of some amazing falls, and it also refers to winegrowing regions in both New York and Canada.
So a Niagara Riesling is a wine made from Riesling grapes grown in the Niagara region.
Both Niagaras are cool regions to grow grapes, and Riesling can be made in a range of styles, from dry, high-acid, minerally versions to very sweet dessert wines.
Without knowing which style you had, it’s hard to give a precise recommendation, but I’d suggest starting with Rieslings made in New York state. (You should also be able to find some Canadian examples in the U.S.) From there, you could branch out to Rieslings from Washington state, Germany, Austria, Australia and beyond.
Canada’s Niagara is perhaps best known for its ice wine (also known as icewine or eiswein in German). I love ice wine, so I’m going to take your question as a chance to talk about it more. It’s a dessert wine that’s often made from aromatic white wine grapes like Vidal Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Gewürtztraminer and—you guessed it—Riesling.
It’s called ice wine because traditionally the wines are made from grapes that were frozen on the vine. Freezing concentrates the juice, so the resulting wine ends up with significant amounts of residual sugar. There are other ways to make an ice wine (with a freezer, for example). But in any case, the resulting wine is really special and memorable, and it takes more time, effort and expense to make.
If you like this style of wine, you can look for other ice wines, or dessert-style Rieslings. There are some made all over the country, from Washington to California and New York. There are also plenty of examples in Germany and elsewhere. In general, anything labeled “late-harvest” will be similar in style. You can also look for wines labeled beerenauslese or trockenbeerenauslese.
They often come in smaller bottles because they are so intense—and often expensive. But be careful, as there are many types of Rieslings out there. Some non-dessert examples are the opposite of sweet, with a bracing, mouthwatering acidity that’s more like fresh lime juice than honey. These are delightful too. Hooray, Riesling!
—Dr. Vinny
