Wine of the Month: 2019 Dry Riesling
With temperatures dropping and leaves beginning to turn our minds often turn to red wines, while there are many fantastic reds out there to choose from, one of our favorite Fall wines is Dry Riesling, which is this October's Wine of the Month!
Rieslings and Dry Rieslings specifically are excellent Fall wines because they offer the perfect balance of fruitiness, acidity, and sweetness making them wonderful food pairing wines, specifically with all of the classic dishes we associate with Fall here in the US, think butternut squash, Thanksgiving turkey, apple pie, and more!
A Closer Look at the Vineyard
At Suhru Wines we source our fruit, meaning that we work with vineyards across the North Fork of Long Island and one in the Finger Lakes to ensure we get the highest level of quality fruit for our wines. We choose to source our Riesling fruit from the Finger Lakes because their climate allows them to grow the best Riesling fruit in New York state and some of the best in the world!
While a cold region, the Finger Lakes are able to successfully grow vinifera grape varietials because their proximity to a large body of water (same with us here on Long Island) acts to regulate the temperature. The Finger Lakes are very deep and due to their size retain heat, meaning that vines planted close to the water enjoy moderate temperatures. The lakes warm the surrounding land, preventing roots from freezing during cold winters and protecting vines against sudden spring freezes and late frosts. 
Excellent drainage is also very important to grape vines and the Finger Lakes boast shale soils on the hillsides leading down to the lake making it an ideal growing environment.
We have been working with the Vineyards at Dalrymple Farms for several years now. Dalrymple vineyards mature under the careful eye of second-generation grape growers, who have been tending vines in the Finger Lakes region of New York since the early 1960’s. A balance of experience and technology allows Bill Dalrymple to grow some of the best varietals in the region.
Utilizing the resources provided by the Viticulture Department of Cornell University, Dalrymple is experimenting with the ‘Dosavina’ program to further enhance its efforts in environmental responsibility. ‘Dosavina’ allows growers’ to measure necessary vineyard treatments by leaf count instead of acreage. This reduces spray applications by 33% while maintaining the quality of the fruit grown. Suhru Wines is proud to be partnered with Dalrymple Farms and their Eco-friendly practices.
A Closer Look at our Dry Riesling
Made entirely in stainless steel tanks to accentuate the minerality of the wine, our 2019 Dry Riesling retains a zingy vibrant acidity. Double Gold and 96pt score winner at the 2021 International Eastern Wine Competition, this pale yellow wine has bold, bright aromatics and rich notes of honey and apricot and crisp notes of clementine, honey dew melon, white peach, musk pear, and starfruit on the palate. An excellent sipping wine, the crisp acidity means it pairs wonderfully with a wide range of dishes including seafood, Asian cuisines, dry-rub barbecue, Fall produce, turkey, duck, and spicier dishes.
In 2019 the Finger Lakes—where this fruit was grown—saw a more vigorous growing season than years past, with more "sun or degree" days at the vineyard. As a result, the grapes ripened earlier resulting in riper fruit while the pH remained low, the ideal scenario when it comes to white wines. Therefore our 2019 Dry Riesling has a slightly higher residual sugar than years past. This exceptional wine is drinking beautifully at the moment and will only continue to improve with age (yes Rieslings are a white wine that can age!).