Dreissigacker Organic Dry Riesling 2024

A bit like Ronseal, this one does exactly what it says on the label - it's Riesling, it's organic, and it's most definitely dry. Germany still sometimes gets saddled with the idea that all its wines are a bit sweet, but that's history. This one is from Rheinhessen, the country's largest wine region, and is a thoroughly modern take - fermented with wild yeasts and kept in stainless steel to lock in all that fresh, food-friendly acidity. Fragrant with ripe apple, pear, and honeysuckle, there's a citrusy zip to it, along with a long, flinty finish that keeps things fresh and precise. Vibrant, textured and poised, it's a benchmark for contemporary German Riesling.

It's very food-friendly - perfect with crispy pork belly or spicy Thai and Sichuan dishes, where its fresh acidity and citrusy zip balance rich flavours and cut through the heat.

Dreissigacker Wein's vineyards sit around the villages of Bechtheim and Westhofen in the Rheinhessen, of which just over half are planted with the classic Rhine variety, Riesling. Jochen Dreissigacker is the man in charge and everything he does organic, describing his transformation to organic viticulture as 'the artisan path to purity'. From 2019, he also started following biodynamic principles in order to create the optimal conditions for the grapes to thrive - an approach that he describes as 'a long-term investment in nature and wines'. He reduced the yields in the vineyard by creating a much healthier soil, which in turn was lower in vigour. 'The path to any truly great wine is to limit the number of grapes that are allowed to ripen,' says Jochen.