Welschriesling

Italy is Welschriesling's likely country of origin: VIVC records Italy as the country or region of origin of the variety. Its pedigree, confirmed by markers, gives Coccalona Nera as one parent; the second parent is unknown. WineWiki's VIVC-derived lineage data lists Barbera and Vespolina as half-siblings of Welschriesling. The passport flags offspring, but no children are linked in that data.

• VIVC prime name: Welschriesling; VIVC variety number 13217; country of origin: Italy
• Parent 1: Coccalona Nera (pedigree confirmed by markers)
• Parent 2: unknown
• Half-siblings in WineWiki's lineage data: Barbera and Vespolina
• Offspring: flagged in the VIVC passport; none linked in WineWiki's lineage data

Welschriesling most likely comes from northern Italy, and Riesling Italico is one of its many aliases. It is planted widely in Friuli. Despite the name, Welschriesling is not related to white Riesling, and Elbling is its closest relative.

• Not related to white Riesling; Elbling is its closest relative

Welschriesling is widely grown throughout Central and Eastern Europe. In Austria, the grapes for neutral, acid-driven Sekt base wine come mostly from around Poysdorf in the Weinviertel, Steiermark makes easy-drinking dry Buschenschank wines, and Burgenland, especially the Seewinkel, makes nobly sweet Trockenbeerenauslese. In Südsteiermark, Tement's Opok Welschriesling comes from old vines rooted largely in poor Opok soils. Kracher, whose winery lies in the Seewinkel, describes the evaporation of Lake Neusiedl, evening fog and the warm Pannonian climate as creating the warm, humid weather that allows Botrytis cinerea to develop. In Hungary, Olaszrizling is grown in the Balaton region, including Balatonfüred-Csopak and Badacsony.

• Austria: Steiermark (dry wines), Burgenland's Seewinkel (nobly sweet wines) and the Weinviertel around Poysdorf (Sekt base wine)
• Hungary: the Balaton region, including Balatonfüred-Csopak and Badacsony
• Croatia: Slavonia, including Kutjevo and Ilok
• Slovenia: grown there under the name Laski Riesling

Welschriesling gives high-acid, gently aromatic wines. Dry Welschriesling is often very fresh, with aromas of green apple and citrus. Tement describes its Opok Welschriesling as fresh on the nose with notes of green apple, lime, white flowers and herbs, and a juicy, slightly salty finish. Beerenauslesen and Trockenbeerenauslesen show exotic aromas on the nose and a fine honeyed note on the palate, supported by the variety's characteristic acidity.

• Dry styles: often very fresh, with green apple and citrus aromas and higher acidity
• Lees-aged dry: some growers now use longer lees contact to make complex wines that can age
• Sweet BA and TBA: exotic aromas, a fine honeyed note and the variety's characteristic acidity

For dry wines, some growers have recently turned to longer lees contact to make complex, age-worthy Welschriesling. The wines are very well suited to Sekt production. The berries are thin-skinned. At Kracher in the Seewinkel, botrytis in 2022 allowed three selective harvest passes. Kracher's Zwischen den Seen wines mature in large wooden barrels or steel tanks with long yeast contact, while its Nouvelle Vague wines are marked by barrique ageing; the 2022 TBA No. 2 Welschriesling, a Zwischen den Seen wine, was vinified in stainless steel.

• Dry: longer lees contact for complex, age-worthy wines at some estates
• Sparkling: very well suited to Sekt; base-wine grapes come mostly from around Poysdorf in the Weinviertel
• Sweet and botrytised: at Kracher, selective harvest passes (three in 2022), with Zwischen den Seen wines in large wood or steel and Nouvelle Vague wines in barrique

In Südsteiermark, Tement makes the Opok Welschriesling, a Südsteiermark DAC, from old vines rooted largely in poor Opok soils. Kracher, in Illmitz in Burgenland's Seewinkel, makes numbered Trockenbeerenauslesen; its 2022 collection includes TBA No. 2 Welschriesling and TBA No. 3 Grande Cuvée, a blend of Welschriesling and Chardonnay. In Hungary, producers in Balatonfüred-Csopak and Badacsony make wines with Olaszrizling, and in Croatia, Krauthaker in Kutjevo makes Graševina.

• Austria, Südsteiermark (dry): Tement Opok Welschriesling Südsteiermark DAC
• Austria, Burgenland (sweet): Kracher TBA No. 2 Welschriesling (Zwischen den Seen) and TBA No. 3 Grande Cuvée (Nouvelle Vague, Welschriesling and Chardonnay), both 2022
• Hungary: wines with Olaszrizling from Balatonfüred-Csopak and Badacsony
• Croatia: Graševina from Krauthaker (Kutjevo)

Dry Welschriesling is often very fresh, but some growers now use longer lees contact to make complex wines that can age. Beerenauslesen and Trockenbeerenauslesen are supported by the variety's characteristic acidity.

• Lees-aged dry: complex and age-worthy
• Sweet BA and TBA: honeyed, backed by the characteristic acidity

Primary sources: https://www.vivc.de/index.php?r=passport%2Fview&id=13217 ; https://www.oesterreichwein.at/unser-wein/rebsorten/weisswein/welschriesling ; https://www.kracher.at/en/about_us/winery/ ; https://shop.kracher.at/en/Wines/TBA/Kracher-Kollektion-2022/ ; https://www.tement.at/produkt/opok-welschriesling-suedsteiermark-dac-bio-2/ ; https://www.tement.at/produkt/de-weinstock-alte-reben-welschriesling-suedsteiermark-dac-2021/ Reference sources: https://www.jancisrobinson.com/learn/grape-varieties/white/welschriesling ; https://www.decanter.com/premium/welschriesling-revealing-its-potential-plus-10-wines-to-try-504285 Last verified 2026-10-19