Airfield Estates 2008 Riesling

This week’s selection:

Winery: Airfield Estates

Varietal: Riesling

Price Paid: $15.99

Vintage: 2008

Area: Yakima, WA

Alcohol: 14.1%

Purchased: Colasanti’s Market

Overall: I like my Rieslings on the dry side but this had a pleasant sweetness with enough acid to balance it out. Apple, citrus and a good Riesling to have with Chinese or Curry in particular.

Reviews

Winemaker’s Notes:

A family owned and operated winery located in Prosser, Washington -- in the heart of the Yakima Valley AVA. Great wines begin in the vineyard! Airfield Estates uses 100% estate grown fruit. Our first vines were planted in 1968 by Don Miller. Today, the estate vineyard spans over 860 acres and includes 26 different varieties.

The vineyard is located at the foot of the Rattlesnake Mountains in the Yakima Valley. All of the vineyard blocks are situated within a 3 mile radius of the original WWII airbase. Within this range, there is a considerable amount of diversity of soil and microclimatic conditions. To maximize quality, we carefully match grape varietals to the most suitable sites.

Well balanced with impressive acidity, this slightly sweet Riesling offers a bouquet of citrus and apple with a touch of minerality. It begs for Asian inspired foods, oysters, shellfish, and salads.

From Fullpullwines:

http://fullpullwines.wordpress.com/2010/01/06/2008-airfield-states-riesling/

This Riesling comes from a block of 30-year-old vines that also goes into Ste Michelle’s Eroica Riesling program, routinely recognized as one of the state’s premier Riesling bottlings. Lots of citrus notes on the nose, with just the barest hint of petrol adding attractive complexity. On the palate, there is zingy acid that immediately hits the sides of the tongue, bringing flavors of lemon, flower, and clay. The 1.7% residual sugar is almost imperceptible, balanced beautifully by all that acid.