Riesling, the sweet Germanic wine thought to have been consigned to the trash can of 1980s bad taste along with home perms and pastel-colored leg warmers, is making a comeback.
And proving Heraclitus' ancient aphorism that you can't step into the same river twice, each of these items is back with a noughties twist: Leg warmers have morphed from pastel shades to bolder colors, perms are done properly in the salon, and excellent Rieslings are no longer the exclusive preserve of Austria and Germany. New World winemakers are now leading the charge in reimagining the wine to suit the palates of this generation; winemakers such as Wendy Stuckey of Chateau Ste. Michelle, who was in Tokyo last Friday to hold a winemakers' dinner at the Westin Tokyo hotel in Ebisu.
The Japan Times caught up with Stuckey prior to the meal to find out about the triumphs and challenges of crafting an elegant wine from this curiously sweet varietal. Before taking up the position in October 2007 as chief white winemaker at Ste. Michelle in Washington State, Stuckey spent 15 years working for Wolf Blass. During that time she won numerous awards, including an annual Wolf Blass award, given to a winemaker in recognition of the work they have done toward producing Riesling in Australia.