Summer of (Riesling) love
Sometimes you can be so close to something you fail to fully appreciate it. Examining our relationships, personal talents and other gifts can readily confirm this. Take Riesling as an example. It’s a wine I love. I’m not just talking about a lazy, hackneyed version of vinous amour. No, it borders on grape lust, a visceral arousal that spurs action. Or, might I say, should spur action?
I have plenty of bottles of the stuff at my house and, yes, some are being aged in the dark oh-so-tenderly. I suppose Riesling’s rocky legacy (pun somewhat intended; wink-wink to you terroirists) has made me less expectant of finding a good glass out on the town, save for premium bars and restaurants.
Further, I’m well aware of the Summer of Riesling. I spent time at Terroir New York (where SOR was born) last year during a visit to the Village and I cheer the work of the wine bar’s owner, Paul Grieco, who has roused due respect for the varietal. The SOR has benefited from a sizeable wave of publicity and comparable attention from the social media set.
Yet I successfully ignored it.
Thankfully, the summer is long enough to deliver me from my aimlessness, and several local establishments are in on SOR 2011 including Savona in Gulph Mills, Pub & Kitchen and Brauhaus Schmitz in Philly and Cold Point Pub at Whole Foods in Plymouth Meeting. In my case, I wandered into Tria near Rittenhouse Square to temporarily escape the stinky city heat. As I looked over the standard house list, a server stepped up with a smile and slid an SOR card across the bar. Trumpets sounded.
It was an easy choice: A 2009 Domaine Mittnacht from Alsace. It was dry as billed but peachy up front. It made my mouth water, then and now.
Surveying the bar, I guessed that a third of the patrons had SOR selections in hand. I also guessed that such a ratio was a significant boost for Riesling sales, compared to a “typical” evening. Good for the producers and the distributors and the bars. Good for all us, really. Additional exposure to the undersold merits of Riesling is great in my book, and beneficial for everyone – even those who get too close and lose sight for love.