After my adventures in Austria and Germany, which were both informative and intoxicating, I wondered why I hadn’t gone back to Alsace for Riesling. Alsatian Rieslings are lovely. They make a dish there which is basically pig in a pot…and I’m not talking about the tenderloin. They put pig ear, feet, snout, and all the stuff we wouldn’t eat and cook it with a bottle of Riesling, and then eat it up while quaffing Riesling.

I’m having a 96 Bott-Geyl “Burgereben de Zellenberg” Riesling. (I didn’t want to type those intimidating words in quotes, it’s probably the vineyard.) But I got it for 15 bucks and it is excellent. And having 8 years on it has not diminished it in any way; it is as fresh as if it was this year’s vintage. Picks up more elegance, but still a great wine for a hot summer day.