MY FAVORITE spring wine is one that is almost impossible to find. Never mind that it's made all over the world—France and Italy, Germany and Austria and even California and Oregon. Or that it's refreshing and crisp and even pairs well with so-called "difficult" foods like asparagus and other green vegetables. It remains woefully obscure—at least to most American wine drinkers.

Silvaner (or Sylvaner as it's known in France and parts of Italy) is a white grape originally grown in Austria, where little of it is planted...