From classic sippers to cool trends, get some summer in your glass

As promised, here are a few more Nik Weis Riesling selections which are very affordable, delightful summer food and quaffing wines. Let’s start with Nik Weis St. Urbans-Hof Urban Riesling, a well-made, dry-style Riesling. The 2020, available locally, shows light, bright, 14K green-tinged gold, with a bouquet of tropical fruit, citrus and herbal hints. On the full-bodied, balanced palate, 10.5% ABV, bright mineral acidity and spicy finish. WS said 89 points; me too. You can find it under $14, a great entry Riesling buy. Those who already know about Mosel Riesling will enjoy the 2019 Ockfener Bockstein Kabinett, 92 McD under $30. NB, there is a difference between the labels, dry GG and slightly sweeter Kabinett. My guru Jancis Robinson awarded 17.5, and she’s a very tough scorer. In my book, this is an easy 93 points. If you can’t find the 2019, the ‘17 is 91 McD plus 1 price point. Ockfen is one of Germany’s Grand Cru-type regions. Since I have seen the 2017 GG in Delaware, let’s review it. The proper name (don’t panic) is 2017 Weingut St. Urbanshof Nik Weis Ockfener Bockstein Riesling Grosses Gewachs, 94 McD, drinking well now. A caveat – on many labels, GG designates wine from Grosses Lage (great sites). There is quite a bit of controversy surrounding this designation. I think the effort, revised in 2012, is valid. Others say marketing. There is a wealth of discussion. Just keyboard in “Grosse Gewachs?” To pique your interest in dry Riesling, these will run about $70. A comparable-grade Chard from Burgundy rated mid-90s, like Latour Corton Charlemagne Grand Cru, is $230, or from Cali, e.g. Aubert East Side or Peter Michel Pointe Rouge, about $150. I think of this type chardonnay as quaffing wine, quite different from the food-friendly Rieslings that are also great summer sippers when young. The GG 2017 will age 30 years and change fairly dramatically from its current peach, slate, citrus aromas and lychee, peach, citrus flavors riding a bright mineral acidity through a cleansing long finish that repeats lychee and peach and adds a very slight saline accent. When opening some Rieslings, some folks may detect a Texas Tea whiff. The effete write “petrol” in deference to our British-speaking pals. This disappears quickly, faster when swirled in nearly all cases. 

Let’s wrap up with a relatively new rage that many of the “cool kids” are gravitating toward, Petillant naturel wines, or methode ancestral en Francais. Obviously, to sparkling wine aficionados, this is truly not new. Instead of secondary fermentation, these are bottled before the initial fermentation is completed. Be careful when opening because the pressure may vary, even bottle to bottle. Many claim it gets drier as it rests. Others say you can leave it in a sunny location to speed its fermentation. Most agree, drink young. Donkey and Goat Lily’s Pet Nat, $35, has been around since 2011. Made of Chardonnay, it is fruit- and floral-forward with earthy, spicy notes. Those who wish to appear on fleek (neologism for cool) or think I’m esplanade (attempting to explain while drunk) should look into Swick Wines City Pop Pet Nat. This combines “orange” wine with pet nat tech. As you would imagine, orange flavors with a yeasty back note and slight tannic bite, $35. Call me 404 (hopelessly out of touch), but a $35 tag sends me back to top-flight Prosecco, Cava or domestic blanc de blanc.