2013 Pacific Rim Sweet Riesling, Columbia Valley 750ml 6-Pack

This Sweet Riesling is our best seller Riesling and is made in a very special manner to achieve great balance of residual sugar and acidity. The grapes for the Sweet Riesling are picked early so to have a high level of acidity to balance the sugar in the final wine - usually between 20 and 22 Brix. Some portion of the blend has noble rot based on the growing conditions; in a cool year such as 2011 the noble rot affected grapes made up 60% of the picking while in warmer year noble rot made up only 5% of the grapes used. The pressed juice is fermented cold (50F) to preserve varietal aromas using native yeasts. The wine ages for 4 to 6 months in stainless steel tank with no oak and it does not go through the malolactic conversion keeping the wine fresh and aromatic.

The wine is sterile bottled to guarantee its stability and is closed with a screwcap to ensure freshness at consumption. We purposefully leave 1600 mg/L of residual carbon dioxide to balance the 65 g/L residual sugar. The use of air tight screwcaps, the high acidity and the high residual sugar of this wine allows for a long aging. The primary varietal fruit will recede over the first 3 years of aging and delicious bottle aging aromas of honey and jasmine will develop over time. Drink within 8 years of the vintage, sooner if you prefer fruitier character over bottle aged ones.