{"title":"Chateau Bela","description":"This extraordinary dry Riesling hails from Slovakia, a country to which we’ve only ventured a handful of times in this newsletter. Egon saw untapped potential in Slovakia’s terroir, and in 2001 with partner (and brother-in-law) Miroslav Petrech, established the winery on the banks of the Danube, the same area in which the Romans planted grape vines millennia ago.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe winery is located not far from the Hungarian border, and the combination of a riverfront situation and protective, north-facing peaks might remind some wine lovers of Austria’s famed Wachau. Its climate conditions — cold winters, hot summers, and dry autumns — are just right for producing top-quality dry Riesling. And of course, Slovakia’s relative obscurity enables this wine to be sold for a song.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003eThe defining characteristic of Müller’s German Rieslings is their residual sugar, and while we love an off-dry Riesling any day of the week, not everyone finds them as appealing. Lovers of dry Riesling, in the Austrian or Alsatian fashion, will find much to love in Chateau Bela. So will devotees of Riesling’s greatest master.\u003cbr data-mce-fragment=\"1\"\u003e","products":[],"url":"https:\/\/sf.flatiron-wines.com\/collections\/chateau-bela.oembed","provider":"Flatiron SF","version":"1.0","type":"link"}