Riesling is one of the world’s most noble white grape varieties, responsible for a huge range of wine styles from steely bone dry to the most unctuous tongue-tingling stickies. While experts credit Riesling with Roman ancestry, its heartland is undoubtedly Germany, where it reaches sublime heights from terraced vineyards perched above the twisting Mosel and Rhine river valleys. Riesling is a hardy grape suited to cool climates and while it performs well on Germany’s slate soils, today it is successful in wine regions as far afield as France, Austria, Chile, Australia and New Zealand. Riesling’s flavour profile can vary from mineral to delicately floral, from crisp apple to tangy lime, tropical passionfruit and pungent kerosene. However, irrespective of its origin, vintage or age, Riesling always retains its hallmark pristine freshness, a factor of its high natural acidity.