Chicken with Orange & Star Anise Wine Pairing

Riesling:  Schäfer-Fröhlich Felseneck Kabinett 2015 – Pairing Rating:  9.5 out of 10.0

It’s common knowledge among sommeliers that Riesling is one of the most underappreciated white wines.  Perhaps it is the lengthy names on German Rieslings that are off-putting and not worth the effort to understand. More likely, it is the mistaken impression that all Rieslings are sweet.  This is really too bad, especially in the face of the excellent 2014 and 2015 vintages from Germany and Alsace – both widely acclaimed and available.

We maintain that Riesling struts its stuff when paired with food. It’s analogous to the belief that John Lennon’s vocals are better appreciated when he’s singing with McCartney. So it is with Riesling and food – better together. For this reason, we continue to promote recipes that pair beautifully with Riesling.  If you have followed our blog for the past few years, we have posted 4 Riesling-friendly recipes thus far. This dish adds to the effort.

Recipe: Chicken Thighs with Orange & Star Anise

The above photo understates the lovely sauce of this recipe . . . a preparation which is not as complicated as the title may imply. Together, the citrus and star anise create a unique flavor profile that works beautifully with the chicken. If you have not encountered star anise before, the spice is native to China, and comes from a small evergreen tree. Star anise is used to give a licorice flavor to savory dishes, particularly those with pork and poultry.

Rice and Sauce Components

The weight of the sauce in this recipe calls for a wine that is medium-bodied, with sufficient acidity to stand up to the citrus . . . and a touch of residual sugar to match the subtle sweetness of the orange and licorice flavors. To us, this calls for Riesling.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our wine choice was a German Riesling from the Nahe region:  Schäfer-Fröhlich Felseneck Kabinett 2015 ($36). This wine, like all Rieslings, will age beautifully. We have showcased this young Riesling to alert you to the quality of the 2014 and 2015 vintages. And because the wine is young, we recommend aeration to allow its floral nose to emerge. On the palate, green apple juiciness and lemon/lime zest danced sprightly, underscored with ample, but not overpowering, acidity. All these flavors lingered on the finish, with some crushed stone minerality evident. The wine was totally refreshing, while the touch of residual sugar complemented the sauce perfectly.

A few words about Riesling’s sugar content. It can range from bone-dry (Trocken) to off-dry (Kabinett) to medium-sweet (Spatlese) to very sweet (Auslese, Eiswein, and Trockenbeerenauslese). If the wine label is not clear about this, check the alcohol content.  If it’s 12-13%, the wine is dry. If it’s 7-8%, the wine is off-dry or sweeter. Throughout the range of residual sugars, however, Rieslings deliver balanced levels of acidity to keep them from tasting cloying. On the palate, they are rich with flavors that include peach, apricot, yellow plum, nectarine and green apple, underscored by mineral notes of stone or slate. All these features, especially the range of sweetness, speak to Riesling’s versatility as a food pairing wine:  from bone-dry with oysters or poached salmon, to off-dry with foods of subtle sweetness (this recipe) or spicy heat (Thai), to very sweet with crème brûlée or fruit-based desserts.

If you haven’t yet explored the Riesling world, we encourage you to do so.  And the pairing options we’ve provided in this blog may be an easy way to start. If your preference is to begin with American-made Riesling, look for NY Finger Lakes producers (Red Newt, Hermann J. Wiemer or Ravines), or California and Washington producers (Navarro, Hogue or Chateau Ste. Michelle “Eroica”).

If Lennon had been an advocate for Riesling, he may have titled his song “Give Riese a Chance”. You should as well.