D' Arenberg "Dry Dam" Riesling 2010, McLaren Vale SA + Pork Cutlet
McLaren Vale contains some of the biggest names (wineries) in the country.
Predominantly land of red wines, it is a unique place where cab Sav, Shiraz, Grenache, Mataro and even Pinot Noir sometimes simply thrives and produce great wines.
You can also grow white grapes there, but it is a lot harder.
One place though, year after year, succeeds to create a great Riesling.
No pretension, no fuss, no fireworks .... just a great little wine.
We are talking here about D' Arenberg, one of the oldest family owned wineries of the country.
Their Dry Dam Riesling is always stunning, full of intensity in its youth.
But if you can hold on to a few of those for some years, the wine suddenly jumps ten levels.
It retains its freshness and acidity, but now you also have power, old liquor flavour on the back palate, structure (like you can only find in German or French Rieslings) and nature.
Sit back and relax. No matter where you are when you sip on it, you travel back to McLaren Vale, in the middle of the vines, in between the grapes and the sheep the winery uses to mow the lands. You could almost see Chester Osborne in the picture, trying his latest dead Arm Vintage straight from the Barrel, in his pink suit of course...
To enjoy this wine, we recently added to our menu an old classic/favourite:
Pork Rib Cutlet, served with roasted apples, cabbage, and mash, finished with an apple jus.
Tender, moist, full of flavour, it gives you the smile just like the wine :)