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Behind Door #6
Dr Pauly-Bergweiler Riesling
About this winery
Low yields, hand picking, individual plot stainless steel fermentation… these are some of the key ingredients to producing high quality Riesling, something that the Dr. Pauly – Bergweiler Estate is known to consistently achieve. Winemaker Carl Debus works his magic through gentle handling of the fruit and young wines, allowing nature to show best what the estate has produced. Winners of the 2012 Wine & Spirits Magazine Winery of the Year Award, this is one Riesling “House” that knows what they are doing.
Tasting notes
A lovely cool climate Riesling with a palate of crab apples, candied lemon peel, and lime zest. Nearly bracing acidity is balanced by a lovely level of residual sugar. Do not let the bottle on this one food you – the producer labels it as Medium Sweet – which we would argue is more of an off dry in reality. Deliciously quaffable, Riesling is generally one of the worlds most food friendly wines.
Perfect Pairings…
Around the holidays my favourite pairing for Riesling (outside of with Turkey Dinner) is usually with Fondue – specifically Cheese Fondue. In our home we like to enjoy both Cheese and Meat/Veggie Fondue together at the same time. This usually results in making an assortment of little ‘sandwiches’ – where the fried meat is placed atop a baguette round that has been dipped in cheese and topped with a fried mushroom, and sauce (think many little crustinis!) The combinations, along with sauces are endless this way! In order to stand up to such an assortment of flavours, a wine that is both fruity with mouth watering acidity, and a little residual sugar is needed. Sometimes however, certain wines can interact poorly with different cheeses – giving you funky flavours. Unlike many other wines, this Riesling will not cause off putting flavours with your delicious cheese.
Feel free to use a pre-made cheese fondue like Swiss Marr (one of my favourites) and add roasted garlic cloves and nutmeg as you heat it. Or alternatively, we have our own favourite cheese Fondue Recipe
Roasted Garlic Cheese Fondue
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Grated Emmental cheese
- 1 Cup Grated Gruyere cheese
- 2 Cups Mild White Cheddar cheese
- 1 Tbs. cornstarch
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 4 large cloves garlic, halved and lightly smashed, then roasted in the oven with olive oil until golden brown
- 1/4 tsp Nutmeg
- 1/4 cup kirsch
- Freshly ground black pepper
In a large bowl, toss the cheeses with the cornstarch.
In a small saucepan, combine wine and roasted garlic cloves, and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from heat and let stand for 5 minutes.
Return the pan to medium-low heat and slowly add cheeses to the sauce pot, stirring constantly to allow the cheese to melt evenly and avoid clumping. Continue until all of the cheese is melted, and smooth. Adjust the heat as necessary to maintain barely a simmer.
Stir in the kirsch and nutmeg until smooth, then season to taste with pepper.
Transfer the mixture to a fondue pot over a low flame at the table to keep warm. Serve with baguette slices, apples, and and an assortment of veggies for dipping…
Or just go all out and begin making your own “Meat & Cheese” Crustinis the way the Zondags do 😉
Cheers!
– Kathryn
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