The 100,000ha of German vineyards that stretch from Bonn to Basel produce some of the greatest white wines in the world from the Riesling grape. Riesling has a knack of maintaining its varietal character while reflecting the terroir of its site, so while all German Rieslings have that balance of nerve-tingling fruit and refreshing acidity, there are definite regional differences.

The steep slatey slopes of the Mosel Valley produces the lightest, most minerally Rieslings, with particularly firm, steely examples coming from its tributaries, the Saar and Ruwer - Reichsgraf Von Kesselstatt is one of the very top estates. The south-facing slopes of the Rheingau are drier and sunnier, and, as a result, the wines are slightly fuller. The underrated Nahe lies in between the Mosel and Rheingau both stylistically and geographically, while the large Rheinhessen region can produce firm, full and racy Rieslings. The Pfalz region further south is warmer and so, not surprisingly, the wines are slightly richer - Burkin Wolf produce some of the finest wines here.