Niagara riesling receives much-needed attention from Wine Spectator | Canada Voices

Niagara riesling producers are gaining attention after a tourist from Georgia praised its style earlier this month in a letter to the Wine Spectator.

Ralph from Columbus had visited “the Niagara Lakes area of Canada” and asked where he could find rieslings with similar flavours available in the U.S. He did not mention a specific producer or style, so MaryAnn Worobiec, the magazine’s Napa Bureau chief and senior editor, couldn’t give a precise recommendation: She suggested starting with rieslings made in New York state, or finding some Canadian examples in the U.S. “From there, you could branch out to rieslings from Washington state, Germany, Austria, Australia and beyond,” she explained, and concluded the piece with “Hooray, Riesling!”

Riesling producers could use more Ralphs. The fruity white wine typically sold in a distinctive tall and fluted bottle, known professionally as a hock bottle, is losing favour with consumers.

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The volume of riesling production in Ontario has been declining since 2017, but there was a bounce back last year, according to the 2025 vintage report by The Ontario Wine Appellation Authority. This increase was likely due to the enthusiasm generated by higher sales of Ontario VQA wines in the province and the availability of riesling grapes, after all the chardonnay, pinot gris and sauvignon blanc supply had already been taken.

The report also noted a 30-per-cent increase in table wine production for the 2025 vintage compared to the previous year. In 2025, a total of 55 grape varieties were harvested to produce Ontario VQA wines, resulting in 48 per cent white wines, 46 per cent red wines and six per cent rosés.

Sales figures reported by the LCBO since the removal of US wines from the shelves showed sales of VQA wines increased by 63 per cent, with the biggest gains made by chardonnay and pinot grigio, followed by cabernet merlot blends and baco noir.

The shapeshifting nature of riesling, which can produce still and sparkling wines that range from zesty and mouthwatering in style to lusciously sweet, makes it difficult for consumers to know what they are buying.

Riesling isn’t like pinot grigio or sauvignon blanc, grapes that typically produce wine styles that are more similar than different in personality. For that reason, once a riesling lover finds a producer or style that they appreciate, they tend to stick with it.

Top-quality producers in Niagara include Cave Spring, Dobbin Estate, Hidden Bench, Thirty Bench and Vineland Estates.

The issue is many consumers aren’t reaching for wines with riesling on the label, which is why the variety is often used as part of a blend of white wines to produce affordable VQA wines with proprietary names.