Public tasting highlights this fascinating grape variety
Once again this year’s Riesling Day, held on Saturday at the Town Hall Square in Naturno, attracted great interest from the public. No wonder, since 50 wines from various Italian wine regions were tasted and compared. “The opportunity to taste numerous wines from different regions is the key feature of our event,” says Magdalena Pratzner, president of the organising committee. “In this way, all Riesling fans can gain an insight into how terroir and vineyard style influence the wines.”
At the tasting tables, the participants of Riesling Day were able to taste all the wines presented at the National Riesling Competition. The competition, an integral part of the event, awarded prizes to the best Rieslings of the 2022 vintage. First place went to a South Tyrolean wine, the Riesling Alto Adige Val Venosta DOC from the Castel Juval Unterortl Winery. “It is a good sign that this wine won the gold medal, especially since Martin Aurich handed over the management of the Castel Juval Unterortl Winery to the next generation in July,” says Pratzner. “As a pioneer in the cultivation of Riesling, this winery has significantly shaped the development of winegrowing in the Val Venosta.
This year, South Tyrolean wines also occupied the second and third places on the podium. These were the Riesling Alto Adige DOC Harrer from the Colterenzio Winery and the Riesling Alto Adige Valle Isarco DOC from Azienda Taschlerhof, which shared third place with the Riesling Renano Trentino DOC Warth from Francesco Moser and the Riesling Oltrepò Pavese DOC II Marinoni from Azienda Cà del Gè.
The sums drawn by Magdalena Pratzner at the end of the 19th Riesling Day in Naturno are very positive. The level of the wines served is very high, the geographical variety very wide and the interest of the public very deep. “Our event has become a firm fixture in the calendar of winegrowers and Riesling lovers,” says the President of the Organising Committee. “The recipe for success is to offer producers a stage and fans a broad overview of Italian Riesling production. In this way we can really put the spotlight on the great potential of this variety and make it known to a wide audience” says Pratzner.
The fact that the most important Riesling event takes place in Naturno is also no coincidence. “Riesling is a trendy wine worldwide and is therefore very popular, but it is precisely the Vinschgau Valley that offers the optimum conditions for the cultivation of individual and extraordinarily interesting wines” says the President of the Organising Committee for Riesling Day.