Solaris

We've been drinking cold-weather grapes this week and we have been pretty far north. Well, we have been pretty far north by American standards up at nearly 46 degrees north latitude. Europe is different, however. Some of the warmest weather grapes are grown in Bordeaux and it is nearly as far north as that.

Today, however, we are going to go to the northernmost wine region in the world (loyal readers will recall that when we visited Antarctica that we went to the southernmost). At about 55 degrees north, Sylt is a German island in the North Sea, far closer to the mainland of Denmark than to the mainland of Germany.

To get to Sylt, we have to fly to the German mainland, From Hamburg, we drive to the northwest and then go over the long causeway to get to the island. Shockingly, upon arriving, we learn that this island that is north of any city we would ever visit even for winter sports in Canada is known as a tourist attraction popular for its long sandy beaches. And, it is this sandy soil that makes it excellent for growing grapes for wine.

Solaris was first bred in the late 20th century in Germany. It is a cross of two grapes, each of which was also bred by reseachers. One is a marriage of Riesling and Grauburgunder (Pinot Gris or Pinot Grigio) while the other is from a Muscat-based marriage.

The purposes of breeding Solaris were three-fold: to create a grape needing only a short growing season, to create a grape highly resistant to fungus and to create a grape that is highly recent to winter deep freezes.

The resulting grape is all of those. Not surprisingly, it is a white grape, not overly tightly bunched. Budbreak occurs in very late spring and harvest can be as early as mif-August. This is ideal for such a northern wine region.

The Solaris grape has medium acidity, but is naturally very high in sugar content. In the coolest climates in which it is grown, however, the natural sugar content is much lower. That said, it can easily be used in a late harvest wine or eiswein.

On the nose, without looking at the wine, your first reaction might be that you are about to drink Nutella. The strong hazelnut aromas come through with just a bit of lingering banana. On the palate, a bit more of the fruit comes forward as well as some lanolin and petrol that must be reminiscent of its Riesling heritage.

Pair your Solaris cold with local seafood like cod and whitefish or drink it closer to room temperature with veiny bleu cheese or fruit tarts.


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