Anam Cara Cellars 2013 Nicholas Estate Dry Riesling, Chehalem Mountains, $22

Oregon’s Willamette Valley is a marvelous location for crafting world-class Riesling. Alas, there is little of it because of the domination of Pinot Noir. It’s hard to blame anyone because Pinot Noir brings in a lot more money than Riesling, both in the vineyard and in the tasting room. Earlier this year, Nick and Sheila Nicholas sold most of their vineyard in the shadow of Parrett Mountain, and the cooling breeze through the Highway 99W corridor from Newberg to Sherwood makes their site one of the best for Riesling in Oregon’s north Willamette Valley. They craft this in a crisp, dry and minerally fashion, starting with a nose of quince, lime zest and Bosc pear. There’s a match on the bone-dry, low-alcohol palate, which produces mouthwatering acidity and an ideal foil for Asian fare, shellfish and even fried food such as fish and chips. Supporters of the International Riesling Foundation, the Nicholases display the IRF scale on the back label, which leans on the dry side of “dry.” This earned a gold medal in the 2016 Cascadia Wine Competition.

Rating: Outstanding!

Production: 150 cases

Alcohol: 12.1%

Winery website

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