Ex-rock band manager Charles Smith is making some phenomenal wines up in Washington state these days, he emphasizes value throughout his range of wines and follows a philosophy of wine making that results in wines that are ready to drink almost immediately. I’m also a big fan of his marketing the wines with edgy, interesting names and stand out labels that are guaranteed to catch the eye.
One of his wines, the Kung-Fu Girl riesling, caught my eye a couple of months ago in a magazine. I thought the name was interesting and the label design, with its creative use of negative space, was downright cool. Most appealing was its positive review in the article and its reasonable price- about $13.
More recently, The Hungry Wino and I were spending a relaxing evening at our favorite bar when he noticed the Kung-Fu Girl on their wine list and we had a short conversation about the review I read and that it was supposed to be pretty good- this served to renew my interest in the wine enough that I picked up a bottle to drink and write about.
Rieslings are predominantly grown in its native Germany, but is also grown in Alsace, France, Austria, New Zealand and the U.S.. The varietal was imported into the country by German immigrants in the mid-to-late 1800s and quickly found a home in the vineyards of New Yorks Finger Lakes region where it is still a popular vine planted to this day. Other U.S. locations that grow riesling are California, Oregon, and Washington (where the Kung-Fu Girl is from).
Riesling from this area tends to be anywhere from dry to sweet and very light, which makes for easy drinking. It also will display pronounced peach and mineral notes.
The Kung-Fu Girl noses nicely with peach, citrus, grass, and apples. Once you take a sip, the nose doesn’t disappoint with flavors of pronounced peach, and citrus notes and subtle pink grapefruit- the wine finishes clean and crisp with a light lemon tartness.
Overall, this is a can’t miss wine, it’s exceedingly honest and a very well structured riesling that doesn’t disappoint.
No comments:
Post a Comment