Tasting Notes 2000

VdP Auction pre-tasting at FUB, Cologne 27.08.2000

With the usual reservations on commenting on a large number of wines tasted in single sip quantities, wines that in many cases are worth considering a whole evening just on their own, I give this brief report. This year one could walk around and select what to taste, rather than being served an endless procession of wines, often rising through the predicated up to TBA or Eiswein, and then back to Kabinett, or Spätlese trocken. I much prefer the new approach, but it could be improved by imposing some sort of system - just ANY system - on which bottles are to be found at which table ;). I tasted rather selectively, and probably missed several exciting wines, but my general impression was that the number of truely outstanding 99s was limited. Thankfully, there were some ice wines from the 98 vintage that were utterly great. There was a general feeling among the tasters I talked to (and I whole-heartedly agreed) that two of them were in a class of their own, both being simply among the greatest Rieslings one can hope to encounter. There was Joh. Jos. Prüm's Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Eiswein 1998, a wine of incomparable finesse, sublety and harmony, leaving me sort of speachless. Frau Prüm compared it to their legendary '83. This wine does not need to show off its brilliant acidity, explosive fruit, massive concentration, as is common for Eiswein, but rises beyond all that into a different shpere of peaceful perfection. The other was H. Dönnhoff's Oberhäuser Brücke Eiswein (Montag) 1998. This is more of a show stopper, full of glorious fruit aromas and spices, growing like a Wagnerian crescendo on the palate with ever more komplex and fasinating nuances, whilst staying completely harmonious and balanced all the way. Where it stands among the the great Dönnhoff Eisweins of recent years (like the 95 and 96 auctione wines) is not for me to say. But when a list of the greatest ice wines of the century will be drawn up, I am quite sure these wines will take their rightful place there.

Some more ice wines that need to be mentioned were Gelz-Zilliken's Saarburger Rausch Riesling Eiswein 1998 which shows the racy and citrussy style of Saar ice wine, with a zippy acidity that is not for everyone, but it is a ripe and playful acidity, rather than of the agressive kind, even if it comes in boat loads rather than tea spoons. Schloss Saarstein's Serriger Schloss Saarstein Riesling Eiswein 1998 is less extreme, and richer, but still utterly Saar ice wine in style. J.J. Cristoffels Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Eiswein 1998 was also lovely, showing glorious fruit (apricots, boskop apples) and a racy balance to go with it.

I was also very excited about the opportunity to taste Egon Müllers 1999 Scharzhofbergers. The E. Müller Scharzhofberger Riesling Kabinett 1999 is certainly amazing. A classic Scharzhofberger, with that slightly grassy edge to its black currant fruit, lovely bite to make you forget the Auslese sugar levels. The E. Müller Scharzhofberger Spätlese 1999 is more polished, certainly noble, but almost too tame for me. I had a similar feeling with the E. Müller Scharzhofberger Auslese 1999. Wonderful fruit, very juicy, but somehow not as gripping and utterly fascinating as I expect a legendary vinatge to produce them. The E. Müller Scharzhofberger Auslese golcapsule is quite a step up from the Auslese, with highly noble white peach notes, and great depth. Finally, the E. Müller Scharzhofberger Beerenauslese 1994 I found difficult to approach. It shows a lot of spicy botrytis and serious acidity. Surely, it's way too young. But I'm not sure it belongs to the same class as the two ice wines above.

Other favorites at the tasting were the wines of Chr. Tyrell. The Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Auslese GK (#21) 1999 is a glorious Auslese, a model of its kind. It has the vivid fruit and balance of a classic, a truely elegnat '99 Riesling. The Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Auslese LGK (#25) 1999 is denser still, highly concentrated and long, with good grip too. Finally, the Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Beerenauslese 1997 was quite amazing in its purity of fruit, and superb balance. Highly elegant Beerenauslese that shows the 97 vintage at it's best. Furthermore, I very much enjoyed Fritz Haag Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese 1999 as well as his Auslese LGKA 1999, even though the gap seems less large than one would think from the respective price estimates. Willy Schaefer Graacher Domprobst Riesling Aulese 1999 was another winner, probably the most explosive an racy Mittelmosel Auslese I have tasted from the 99 vintage.

And finally a remark on the Ahr reds: I liked J.J. Adeneuer' Ahrweiler Rosenthal Spätburgunder Auslese trocken 1999 best. It shows lovely pinot fruit, excellent density, and has good structure. Like the two others, it seems a bit excessive in alcohol at 14.5%. Less might be more here. Are these guys trying to emulate cult Zinfandels? Do grant me though that it is not easy to judge them fairly in the context of low alcohol, nobly sweet Rieslings. A touch behind for me was the more polished Meyer-Näkel Walporzheimer Kräuterberg Spätburgunder Auslese trocken 1999, which has more vanilla oack covering its fine berry fruit. Again, a rather big wine, whose subtle fruit is somewhat in danger from being covered by alcohol and wood. Deuzerhof's Mayschosser Mönchberg Spätburgunder trocken lost that battle in my view. The malty wood flavors play the first fiddle here. The purity and finesse of a fine Ahr pinot noir is lost.

Too many misses, too few hits 01.08.2000

I'm talking of the cream of trocken Rieslings from the Pfalz. I'm taking a small sample, admittedly, but ones I had most recently were on the whole not what they should be. Most dissapointing perhaps I found the highly praised Bürklin-Wolf Forster Kirchenstück Riesling Spätlese trocken 1998 (1es Gewächs) 1998 which which has a phenolic, crushed limes sort of acidity gripping its fruit by the throat, so much that I found it nearly undrinkable (and I didn't want to admit that easily). It didn't soften over two days open, and I cann't see it ever reaching any sort of harmony. In contrast J.L. Wolf's Forster Jesuitengarten Riesling Spätlese trocken 1998 did gain in drinkability after a day, and sure shows that it is made from superb material, but I kept thinking how that bright acidity would be much more enjoyable if balanced by some residual sweetness. Equally famous Koehler-Ruprecht Kallstadter Saumagen Riesling Auslese trocken R 1990 did not show well last time 'round. I had a quite excellent bottle maybe 2 years ago, but this tasted very old and fruitless , a bit like an earlier bottle of the '90 Spl. R. J.L. Wolf's Deidesheimer Leinhöhle Riesling Auslese trocken 1996 has recently been on better form again, after some difficult years. But the wine has not fulfilled my overly optimistic hopes, and I now doubt it ever will. It's a very good bottle of wine, no doubt. A great wine by contrast, and a wine that never has failed to give pleasure at any stage of its life cycle, and surely will for several years to come is G. Mosbacher's Forster Ungeheuer Riesling Spätlese trocken 1996 (1es Gewächs). So there, it can be done!

Dönnhoff does it again in 1999 06.07.2000

Roumors were spread that Dönnhoffs 99s were not up to the 98s, and how could they after that stunning 1998 success, in a vintage that was too warm for truely great Riesling in almost all German regions? I expected forward, soft and fruity wines, a bit too fat for my taste, but surely showing the Nahe region at its best under the somewhat unfavorable conditions. Little did I know... Dönnhoff's 99s are spectacular! The wines have a grace and elegance that I did not think possible in that vintage. Some do indeed rival or even supass their 98 predecessors: e.g. I do prefer the 1999 Oberhauser Leistenberg Kabinett and Niederhauser Hermannshöhle Auslese to the respective 98s. The lineup we tasted was a group of young Rieslings like I rarely have encountered it. Of course, the early approachability of the 99s is a factor in that. Maybe in 20 years we will no longer hold them in as high regard as our 98s or 96s. Who knows? I doubt many bottles will survive that long not so much because I doubt the have aging potentail but because they are so delicious as young wines that it is almost impossible to resist them now.

Zilliken's 99s (corrected) 28.05.2000

P.S. 22.07.00: A friendly reader pointed out I must have confused the numbers of some of the Auslesen below, which are btw part of the AP numbers on the label. I hope I got it right now. Thank you!

When it comes to the 90s, the Saar winemakers have little to complain about. In a normal decade they face 2 or at best 3 good vintages, maybe 4 or 5 reasonable ones, and the rest are catastrophies. But nature was very kind to them in 90, 93, 95, and 97, (and one might include 94 as well), and there was no complete write off among the rest. In 99 finally they face allmost an embarrassment of riches. When we sat down at Hanno Zilliken's table to taste through his 99s we did not see a single bottle of wine that could not legally be sold as Auslese. It is a great joy to taste through the wines, stepping up the ladder slowly as Auslese Nr. 7 is followed by Auslese Nr. 6, followed by Auslese Nr 5, Auslese Nr. 4, etc etc. I hesitate to call it a classic vintage, for the wines tend to lack the sense of tension you find in the greatest Saar wines, the sense of a drama being staged on the palate between ripe fruit and cool, steely backbone. It all came a bit too easy in 99 at the Saar for that, but these wine are beauties and I certainly hope that some of them will with time reach new levels of elegance when the sugar is being eaten up over the years.

A tasting of Maximin Grünhauser wines 17.04.2000

We visited Herrn von Schubert with a group of wine lovers, and were able to taste a number of currently available wines or soon to be released cask samples from the portfolio of the renowned Maximin Grünhaus estate in the lovely Ruwer valley. The general impression was of a stunningly consistent high quality of wines that show class and finesse at all levels, be it QbA or BA, dry or sweet, from any vintage available. The wines fully deserve their reputation as being among the finest Rieslings to be found anywhere. The 99s from this estate appear a bit richer and softer than normal, and one of the strenghts of the vintage may well be higher grade dry wines which we did not have time to taste. The sweet 99s are also well worth seeking out. One of the most impressive wines came from 98 though. Both vintages probably do not reach the hights of the stunning 97s in the predicates I have tasted myself. But keep in mind that all these variations happen on a consitently very high level of excellence.

Mainzer Weinbörse 09.04.2000

The 1999 vintage presented by the VdP estates in Mainz does not inspire unconditional praise, I'm afraid. One has to take the good with the bad. I tasted with two friends from the wine business who are beginning to explore Germany now, and had to agree with them in finding much to criticise, but also some very exciting and promising wines to make up for it. We started with Dr Heger, a leading estate from Baden. The wines are well made, clean and fruity, but lack depth and concentration of fruit given their price tags. There was a big Ihringer Winklerberg Chadonnay 1998 that carried quite a bit of wood, but had a subtle nose of stone fruit, a touch of butter, and a thick palate with nicely refreshing acidity. Pretty good, but not for terroir drinkers. The Riesling Auslese Achkarrer Schlossberg was the tastiest of the lot. An apricot fruit bomb. Again, not a terroir wine. No reds were being shown, unfortunately. Next was Ökonomierat Rebholz who enjoys are rather good press at home, but I tend to find the wines often a bit rustic, with a somewhat drab acidity that that seems to dominate the finish and sometimes all the way through the palate, when the wines are too dilute. Best was the 1998 Birkweiler Kastanienbusch "Erstes Gewächs" (dry Spl), but that does not come cheap, and doesn't really inspire me either. It does show an interesting smokeyness that the winemaker attributes to the terroir though. The wines are solid, but no more imho. I was beginning to crave for something really good. So we tried Gunderloch and felt let down. The Riesling Kabinett "Jean Baptiste" is a descent wine, but unexciting and simple in 1999. The "Erstes Gewächs" Nackenheimer Rothenberg 1998 (dry Spl) has a smokey minerlaty not unlike the Rebholz, and maybe a bit more sophisticated. Quite good. Not great though. The sweet Auslese 1998 showed little depth. I had hoped for more. Time to move north, to Karthäuserhof. Put your nose into the dry QbA. Ahh, the terroir is right in front of your nostrils. The Kabinett trocken has plenty of substance. Of course it was a crazy vintage for the Saar and Ruwer. The wines at the good estates are declassified Auslesen more or less through the range in the lower ranks. With the Spätlese trocken things really took off. Concentrated, minerally, terroir driven, long, long, excellent wine. Herr Tyrell has even better ones left at home, he says. The Kabinett halbtrocken is not quite open yet, and perhaps not as delightful as the 97 was, but has amazing substance for the predicate. Should do very well. The Spätlese finally showed juicy cassis fruit, and a lovely balance. Not as much terroir and minerality as the dry version though. I cann't wait to try the (non-declassified) Auslesen! Next, Gelz-Zilliken, and another winner. The Kabinett halbtrocken was excellent Spätlese material, superseded by a superb Spätlese halbtrocken. Tasting dry down to the stony aftertaste it has finesse and power, and real depth. The Auslese halbtrocken seemed a bit shy by comparison, with some baby fat hiding the minerally acidity. I think it might steal the show in the longer run. Of the sweeter wines, the Spätlese was my favorite, tasting like a solid Auslese of course, with nice citrus and slate notes. The lowest Auslese was also to be tasted, and another 6 or 7 back home in the cellar! Schloss Saarstein had some very good wines too, with the sweet Spätlese as my favorite. Fine stuff. The dry version was good too. The Auslese impressed me less. I'm sure they have better ones at home. von Hövel completed the Saar excursion, and was well worth visiting. His range of 99s starts at Spätlese level. The Oberemmeler Hütte Spl is yet another Spätlese I greatly enjoyed. He topped it with a Scharzhofberger Auslese that comes close to the classic wines from the better parts of this famous vineyard. Is has this aristocratic feel about it, that elegance and structure that the Scharzhofberg provides. The Oberemmeler Hütte Auslese is softer, but a goodie too. From the heights of the Saar we stepped down to the Mosel. Schloss Lieser is a producer I have not tasted too much of, and what I tasted has not really inspired me. Same in 99. From Spätlese on, the wines appear too sweet, showing no grip in the finish and little in terms of minerality or terroir. No my thing. I preferred Joh. Jos. Chrsitoffels wines. The Würzbarten terroir shows very clearly in his wines. In the case of Spätlese, I found myself preferring the Erdener Treppchen though. A wine full of finesse. The aging potential of the Mosel 99s looks a bit questionable to though. We could not taste any Loosens or J.J. Prüms, but the general picture is clear. The Saar and Ruwer are the stars of the vintage not only in MSR but in all of Germany, not unlike in 97. After a small break, we changed colour from white to red. To kick off, we revisited an old favorite: Bergdolt's Spätburgunder Spätlese trocken 1997. The lesser of the two 97s is showing better than ever. The colour is dense like it is rarely seen in German pinot noir. The fruit is pure and concentrated. The structure is beginning to show more than before. It is vibrant and delightful. The idea was to move on to Baden and find something that would be up to it. There was nothing. We tried Huber, an acclaimed producer from the Kaiserstuhl, but none of his wines could compete. The 1997 Spätburgunder 'R' is priced like 1er cru Burgundy. It smells overripe, and porty. On the palate, the fruit gives in to the acidity without staging much of a fight. The slightly cheaper QbA "alter Reben" was too heavy for my taste, but a bit more enjoyable. Baden star Bercher was no better either. The lower end was quite descent (but not really interesting), but the top end is quite off the mark for me. The seriously expensive Burkheimer Feuerberg Spätburgunder Auslese trocken 1997 has a malty, woody nose, and a rather sweet palate initially, that gives way to alcoholic heat and heaviness. How wants to drink this? Back to the Pfalz with the critically acclaimed Knipser. I understand less and less what the German press sees in these wines. A descent St. Laurent showed a promisingly fruity nose, but finished acidic beyond what I can tolerate. The browning 1996 Spätburgunder trocken Grosskarlbacher Burgweg was simply too thin. The 1997 Laumersheimer Kirschgarten Spätburgunder Aulsese trocken was undrinkable for ist sharp sulphury bite. What's the story here? All these wines were blown away by the Bergdolt bottle, and yet these are the wines the critics keep raving about while I never see any mention of his stuff (exept for Pigott's book). What do these people think a Pinot Noir should taste like, I begin to wonder. Back to more positive news. Adeneuer from the little Ahr region showed why this region should not be dismissed. We finally got some nice pinot fruit again! The simple 1999 Ahrweiler Forstberg was just a tasty little red wine. No more, no less. The 1998 Spätburgunder No2 is an elegant pinot with real finesse. Not a Burgundy in structure, but in its way a delightful wine. The No1 is bigger, but shows less freshness. A cask sample of 1999 Auslese trocken was best, with size and power yet not heavy or clumsy, in contrast to the Badeners. Very promising. Finally, we tried some Robert Weil. Supposedly one of the leading German Riesling producers, I found the wines rather uninteresting, slick, and superficial. Polished sweeties without much depth or terroir character. Expensive pralines that give no resistance to the truth seeking wine lover. The 1999 Kiedricher Gräfenberg Eiswein adds to that a disgraceful lack of kick that makes the proposition of spending hundreds of euro on such a bottle quite laughable to me.

A trip to the Mosel 06.02.2000

A visit to the estate of Selbach-Oster in Zeltingen and a local restaurant, where the wines were byo, mostly provided by the incomparable Mr. Riesling himself, P. Veser.