A late-ripening variety that can develop more citrus and peach notes is grown in warmer climates (such as Alsace and parts of Austria).

Riesling's naturally high acidity and pronounced fruit flavors give wines made from the grape exceptional aging potential, with well-made examples from favorable vintages often developing smokey, honey notes, and aged German Rieslings, in particular, taking on a "petrol" character, as a result of the development of the compound TDN.

There are also significant plantings of Riesling in Austria, Slovenia, Serbia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Luxembourg, northern Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa, China, Crimea, and the United States (Washington, California, Michigan, and New York).

[6] The earliest of these references dates from March 13, 1435, when the storage inventory of Count John IV of Katzenelnbogen in Rüsselsheim (close to the Rheingau) lists "22 ß umb seczreben Rießlingen in die wingarten" ("22 shillings for Riesling vine cuttings for the vineyard").

It is presumed that the Riesling was born somewhere in the valley of the Rhine, since both Heunisch and Traminer have a long documented history in Germany, but with parents from either side of the Adriatic the cross could have happened anywhere on the way.

[18] On release, certain Riesling wines reveal a striking petrol note[19] (goût de pétrole in French) that is sometimes described with comparisons to kerosene, lubricant, or rubber.

The negative attitude to petrol aromas in young Riesling, and the preference for fruitier young wines of this variety, seem more common in Germany than in Alsace or on the export market, and some German producers, especially the volume-oriented ones, have even gone so far as to consider the petrol notes a defect which they try to avoid, even at the cost of producing wines that are less suited to extended cellar aging.

The petrol note is considered to be caused by the compound 1,1,6-trimethyl-1,2-dihydronaphthalene (TDN),[20] which during the aging process is created from carotenoid precursors by acid hydrolysis.

[21] Noble rot is employed in many viticultural areas, including the Clare, Barossa, and Eden Valleys in South Australia, and in the southern growing region of Tasmania, though none are as renowned as those from Germany.

In cool years, some growers will wait until November to harvest in expectation of having a higher level of ripeness and subsequent tartaric acid.

In contrast to German wine laws, Alsatian rieslings can be chaptalized, a process in which the alcoholic content is increased through the addition of sugar to the must.

[30] Riesling is very suitable for the late harvest Vendange Tardive and the botrytized Sélection de Grains Nobles, with good acidity keeping up the sweetness of the wine.

In addition to Muscat, Gewürztraminer and Pinot gris, Riesling is one of the acceptable varieties whose planting is allowed in Alsace grand cru sites.

It is common for Australian Rieslings to be fermented at low temperatures in stainless steel tanks with no oxidation of the wine, followed by earlier bottling.

[35] Australian Rieslings are noted for their oily texture and citrus fruit flavors in their youth and a smooth balance of freshness and acid as they age.

[36] Riesling was first planted in New Zealand in the 1970s and has flourished in the relatively cool climate of the Marlborough area and for late harvests in the Nelson region.

[37] Central Otago, the home of cool climate wines, has recently emerged as another area producing terroir driven Rieslings.

[38] Austrian Riesling is generally thick bodied, coating the palate and producing a strong clarity of flavour coupled with a mouthwatering aroma.

It flourishes in the cool climate and free-draining granite and mica soil of the Wachau region where Austrian wine laws allow for irrigation.

In the late nineteenth century, German immigrants brought with them Riesling vines, borrowing the name of Schloss Johannisberg to mark the plants' origin.

So far, the Late Harvest wines most successfully produced are in the Anderson and Alexander Valleys where the weather is more likely to encourage the needed botrytis to develop.

Although Oregon was once viewed as a promising destination for the grape, Burgundy-style wines came to dominate, while in Washington, large producers such as Chateau Ste.

[42][43] Riesling is grown in other regions as well, including colder parts of relatively warm states such as Oklahoma (where it has even been made into an eiswein[44]) and Texas.

This clone and Niagara's summer heat make for uniquely bright wines and often show up in interesting dry styled versions.

In Nova Scotia, particularly in the Annapolis Valley region, Riesling is showing significant promise, being shaped by the warm summer days with cool nights and the extension of the growing season that is being observed.

Riesling is also widely grown in Luxembourg (where it represents some 12% of the vineyard), Hungary, Italy, particularly Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Croatia, South Africa, Chile and Central Europe, particularly Romania and Moldova, Serbia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

In wine making, the delicate nature of the Riesling grape requires special handling during harvesting to avoid crushing or bruising the skin.

Without this care, the broken skins could leak tannin into the juice, giving a markedly coarse taste and throwing off balance the Riesling's range of flavors and aromas.

[47] A Riesling's typical aromas are of flowers, tropical fruits, and mineral stone (such as slate or quartz), although, with time, the wine acquires a petrol note as mentioned above.

[49] To confuse matters, "Red Riesling" has also been used as a synonym for red-skinned Traminer grapes (such as the Savagnin rose of Klevener de Heiligenstein) and the obscure variety Hanns, which is a seed plant of Roter Veltliner.