What Kind of Wine Is Clean Slate Riesling?
Clean Slate Riesling wine is an exotic-tasting white wine. The wine is known for its crisp elegance and versatility of flavor profiles, all of which will be explored in this detailed review. Riesling is an aromatic variety of grape originating in the Rhine region of Germany.
However, it’s now been known to grow abundantly in areas regardless of whether they are warm or cool. It’s a German favorite wine due to its high acidity and perfume-like fragrance. What’s interesting about Clean Slate Riesling is that you can pick up subtle mineral notes in the flavor. This is because Riesling grapes tend to borrow a little flavor from the soil type they’re grown in, hence the earthiness on the palate.
Clean Slate Riesling Review
- Winery — Clean Slate
- Country/Region — Mosel, Germany
- Type — German Riesling
- Aroma — Pear, Citrus, Apple, Lemon
- Grapes — Riesling
- Taste — Dry, Acidic, Sweet, Peach Or Apricot Flavor Notes, Mild Hint Of Spiciness And Minerals
- Alcohol Content — 10.5%
- Sugar — Comes In 6 Categories Of Sweetness
- Pairing — Asian Foods, Spicy Foods, Cured Meats
Clean Slate Riesling reviews definitely nudge you to make this your best choice. Its balanced flavor profile of sweet-sour and moderate hints of spiciness make it an ideal pair for almost any dish you can serve. It’s one of the better white wines available on the market today, all thanks to Mosel’s expertise. Its reputation as a consistent winery is well-earned!
Tasting Notes
The first notes you’ll pick up on are earthy and moderately spicy. This changes to a peachy, ripe acidic flavor thanks to the soil’s richness absorbed by the Riesling. Like we said earlier, Riesling tends to embody the environmental factors during growth and emulate their taste. Since the soil it grows in is rich in slate, it adds a unique mineral quality to the wine.
It’s accurate to say Clean Slate Riesling is more on the sweet side with some acidity/sourness common to these wines. And again, depending on the environment that the grapes have been nurtured in, you can also expect to taste mild hints of melon, nectarine, pineapple, and other tropical fruits. Just remember to swirl your glass.
Appearance
You’ll find that the Clean Slate Riesling has an appealing fresh look and warm transparency. The color is closer to eggshell white than yellow. It comes in a modern, elegant Bordeaux bottle that states upscale dining despite being only 12 dollars.
Aroma
Riesling starts with a sharp smell bearing undertones of pungency. The scale of pungency can depend on how long the grapes have been ripened. The riper it is, the more acidic the taste and greater the intensity of the aroma. But, Clean Slate Riesling has more fascinating notes in its scent than most wines. You might pick up on a delicate lemon or peach quality. Swirling your glass can help you get a better sense of the wine’s intricate flavors.
Taste
The wine has a balanced flavor profile. It’s more dominantly citrus, with a dry sweetness and just a pinch of spiciness. For this reason, it pairs well with spicy foods. The slate-rich slopes the Riesling grows on gives the wine a unique combination of flavor notes. You won’t need discerning taste buds to detect the small notes of fruit such as peach and apricot in the aftertaste.
Finish
Clean Slate Riesling has one of the smoothest finishes you’ll find in wine. It’s dry and sour, with a range of fruity flavor notes. The acidity of the Riesling grape is experienced more strongly at the end of each sip. The spiciness fades and the finish is clean.
Rating
Now, I’ve always been strongly biased towards white wines from the start. I think it best to make that much clear. I love all white wines. But not equally. And even though I’ve tried many before, this wine did take me a little by surprise. It offers a range of distinctive flavor notes packed into one drink. It’s subtle, but there’s also an earthy quality to the taste.
I don’t mind that because it’s still crisp and finishes smoothly. In short, it’s everything you want in a glass of fine white wine. Clean Slate Riesling is a pleasant, everyday wine, and as far as the quality to price ratio goes, it’s a big winner. The best part about the flavor notes is that they’re balanced. A little bit of harmony on my taste buds.
Clean Slate Riesling Food Pairing
Because Rieslings have such a versatile flavor profile, they go well with all kinds of foods. But if you’re determined on an ideal partner to go with the sweet peachiness, lime, acidity, and hints of spice and mineral, here are some options:
Asian foods, particularly salted dishes, will pair brilliantly with this wine. It’ll also help wash down the spiciness from the food. Sushi, curries, and fish are some high-quality options in Asian foods. Other pairing options include roast pork, turkey, and German dishes such as bratwurst, weisswurst, and sauerkraut are fantastic traditional matches.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who Makes Clean Slate Riesling?
Clean Slate Riesling Mosel Germany was formed as a partnership between Moselland, a German wine-growing cooperative located in Bernkastel-Kues, and a top US importer, distributor, and wine developer, Winebow.
Moselland’s story begins with many individual winemakers and growers in 19th century Germany rallying together, out of economic necessity, to form small wineries. These small businesses eventually grew into large cooperatives. In 1969, all the major wineries merged with Haupt Kellerei Koblenz to form Germany’s largest wine cooperative and exporter, Moselland. Moselland has consistently produced high-quality wines for over 50 years.
Winebow is a US brand globally recognized for its exquisite selection of internationally sourced and premium wines. In Germany, Riesling wine labels scale wines into five categories of sweetness. These are:
- Kabinett – Dry unsweet
- Spätlese – Mild sweetness
- Auslese – Average sweetness
- Beerenauslese – Very sweet
- Trockenbeerenauslese – Extra Sweet
The variety is what makes Riesling one of the most versatile wines for food matching. It all has to do with the ideal climatic conditions and geography of Mosel.
How Is Clean Slate Riesling Made?
A vast majority of wines have two major ingredients: yeast and grapes. Sweet Rieslings might incorporate some sugar as well. Grapes for Riesling wines are carefully picked based on maturation from vineyards across the Mosel region. The ideal climatic conditions and mineral abundance in slate have made these vineyards flourish for generations, producing only high-quality grapes year after year.
The grapes are then pressed into juice to get the pulp and fluid out of the skin. Producers of higher-end wines usually have a sorting process right before this stage to separate the stems and crack the grapes a little. After the wine is crushed, it’s settled to form a sediment layer that can be removed to get clear juice, which is stored in barrels.
Where Is Clean Slate Riesling Made?
Riesling finds its most ideal growing conditions in the cool slate soil of Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, a sloped region in Germany that surrounds the Mosel River. Since Riesling is the most prestigious grape in Germany, it accounts for 60% of the entire region’s land covered in vineyards. The slopes play a crucial role in ripening the Riesling grape. They reflect the sun’s beams onto the grapes, which expedites the ripening process. The soil, rich in slate, can retain heat from the sun during the day and warms the vines throughout.
With access to prolonged heat, the grapes can ripen to their full potential, unleashing their crisp acidity, mineral notes, and refreshing citrus flavors into the wine. Producing Riesling to this standard is almost impossible in most other climates. Ripening takes a long time, so the cool climatic conditions can safeguard the grapes aroma and pure flavors as it ripens. The amount of slate is in the soil varies throughout the region, which is how we get a diverse portfolio of flavors in this wine. Mosel Riesling is typically citrusy, with high acidity, and provides many fruity flavors with ranging sweetness.
How to Serve Clean Slate Riesling?
White wine must be served chilled at around 50-52 degrees Fahrenheit (10-11 degrees Celsius). If you’re serving guests, keep the bottle in a bucket with some ice and place it alongside a bottle opener and a napkin. Ideally, as the host, you should also be the first to taste the wine before serving it to guests.
How Much Does Clean Slate Riesling Cost?
The Clean Slate Riesling price starts at $8, and depending on the category and the state you’re importing it to, it might reach $14.95 per 750 ml bottle.
How Long Does Clean Slate Riesling Last?
Fortunately, Rieslings are among those wines that get better with age. Store them in dark, cool conditions, and they’ll only get better over time. There’s no concern of Rieslings going bad for years as long as the bottle remains sealed.
How Many Calories Does Clean Slate Riesling Have?
Clean Slate Riesling Calories content, depending on the sweetness, is approximately 445 calories per bottle. It has a carb content of 22g. Further, Clean Slate Riesling alcohol content is 10,5%.
Conclusion
Clean Slate Riesling reviews definitely nudge you to make this your best choice. Its balanced flavor profile of sweet-sour and moderate hints of spiciness make it an ideal pair for almost any dish you can serve. It’s one of the better white wines available on the market today, all thanks to Mosel’s expertise. Its reputation as a consistent winery is well-earned!
