Tasting Notes 1997

Rating System

For interpretation of the scores I used to give below, use the following rough guide: below 10 I regard as undrinkable, 10-11 quite bad, 12-13 acceptable, 14-15 good, 16-17 excellent (some may prefer to think of 16 as 90 points), 18-19 sublime.

My German Wines of the Year 1997

four wines that were (re-) released in 1997 which impressed me the most.

Overall wine of the year:

Bürklin-Wolf (Pfalz): Deidesheimer Leinhöle Riesling Auslese 1971 One of a number of rereleased old Bürklin-Wolf wines, and of the three I tasted this one stands out as one of the greatest pleasures in wine I have had in my life. The occaison was special too, which may cloud my judgement, but this was simply too good for words. I normally talk about the wine I have in my glass with my fellow drinkers, but we all went quiet over this wonderful bottle of wine.

Dry white:

J.L. Wolf (Pfalz): Forster Jesuitengarten Riesling Auslese trocken 1996 A sleeping giant according to Stuart Pigotts latest book. Well, since he wrote those words the giant has woken up. From the first vintage of Ernst Loosen's new Pfalz venture, this wine shows already the exciting combination of the Pfalz' power and the elegance of a Mosel wine makers touch. One of several great Pfalz wines from 1996, and a real bargain at $11 (from the producer).

Dry red:

Meyer Näckel (Ahr): "S" Spätburgunder trocken Goldcapsule 95 Those who think all Ahr red wine is a joke will stop laughing when they see the price tag of this wine: $70 (auction). They will start smiling again when they taste it. I have not tasted a finer red wine from Germany than this one. It proves beyond reasonable doubt that the Ahr can produce a fine Pinot Noir. Now we only need to see proof that it can be done at a reasonable price.

Dessert Wine (two selections):

H. Dönnhoff: Oberhauser Brücke Eiswein 96 A great Eiswein of monumental proportions and yet great harmony. The aftertaste seems almost endless. One of the greatest dessert wines one can hope to taste. $250 (auction)

Egon Müller: Scharzhofberger BA 1993 An awsome wine. Very closed at this stage, it will require decades to reach its peak. But the racy power on concentration of this wine leave no doubt that this climb will be like the ascend to K2. $560 (auction)

X-mas break 31/12/1997

Tasted on various occaisons over the X-mas holidays.

A visit at Koehler-Ruprecht (Pfalz) 30/12/1997

Some brief notes from a quick visit. Btw: the Auslese trocken R '90 is sold out, and will be released in Spt. 98.

Mostly Austr(al)ian (with dinner) 12/12/1997

Late drink 9/12/1997

Keller (Rheinhessen): Monsheimer Silberberg (?) Rieslaner Auslese 1995 Nice nose with peachy notes and a suggestion of stewed apples and pears (with spices and lemon curd?). Rich and well balanced. A beauty. 16
P.S. tasted again in Jan. 98, I found it not up to a Theo Haart Auslese (rated 16+). So I think I overrated this somewhat. (15.5?)

After dinner 5/12/1997

!Keller (Rheinhessen): Weissburgunder BA 1994 Gorgeous! The essence of apricots, with slightly exotic overtones. Gloroius on the nose, highly concentrated (a small TBA in reality) verging on the oily on the palate, with deliciously refreshing, harmonious acidity. Not as complex or as long as the greatest Rieslings, but at 35DM per 1/2 this is incredibly good value. 17

Mostly Nahe 27/11/1997

VDP Fine & Rare Wine Auction (& pre-tasting), Wiesbaden 15/11/1997

It's an understatement to call this auction the German wine event of the year. The line up of wines was breathtaking, the hall was grand, the house was packed, Michael Broadbent was swinging the hammer, and the mood was self-congratulatory. Some people thrive in such circumstances, but I do have more mixed feelings, strangely. Fighting a flu isn't a good start, and after a generous sample of TBA your palate goes, and even half a day later will not be able to cope with anything less sweet and concentrated. But here you are, sipping TBAs by the dozend, from vintages like 89, 83, 76, 71, etc, with plenty of BAs and Eiswein for good measure. It sounds like snobbism, but this sort of thing becomes an ordeal of a strange kind. After two hours I concluded that this style of wine leaves me more cold than I had previously thought. Don't get me wrong: it was a phantastic experience. Some of these wines are great, and will provide wonderful moments on the right occasion, but especially when they are less than great they no longer impress that much when tasted in such numbers, and one begins to crave for something to drink, rather than to show off with. By that time though any dry wine, esp. the red ones assembled in impressive numbers, tastes harsh an bitter to the strained palate. Of course, one should start at the other end, but then you risk not to see some of the most exciting wines in the tasting. When you finally see some of those rather tiring wines being sold for hundreds of $$ you begin to wonder what forces drive this strange market. I can see most sense at the very top: if you are flithy rich and like to drink the greatest wine there are, then your only problem is to get the opportunity to snatch one up. An Egon Müller Scharzhofberger TBA '59 should then be worth the 13.000DM that it takes to outbid the competition to you, and the 15.000DM for J.J. Prüm's '38 TBA. (Both were not in the tasting, of course. Other pricy bottles were an 1897 Erbacher Heiligenberg TBA at 13.000DM, an 1865 Marcobrunner at 11.000DM, an 1893 Schloss Johannisberger Goldlack at 11.000DM, a 1921 Steinberger TBA at 7.000DM)

With these qualifying remarks, let me comment a bit on some of the wines as I perceived them. I will not give any scores here, just grouping them into broader cathegories. Flu, palate fatigue, and lack of experience with such wines are my reasons for doing so. Bottle variation might also be cited as a reason for caution. So, I may get things completely wrong in cases, but I did have the opinions and comments of two wine loving friends to provide some ground for comparison.

Auction prices are given in therms of the range for the different lots.

Knipser 10/11/1997

An impromptu visit at Knipser in the Pfalz with a long term "cyber friend". The Knipser brothers put (all?) their better wines into barriques, and sell them as Tafelwein. In contrast to many more recent "me-too" barriquesters who multiply like, ...well...termites I guess..., their wines tend to have the power to withstand this treatment, and the brothers have acumulated the knowledge of wood treatment that others are still lacking. Having praised them thus, I still feel that wood does little good German wine in most cases, and the wines mostly leave me feeling sorry for those innocent trees. The true glory of German wine, including the Pfalz, I see in the undiminished expression of fruit and terroir. Prices are rounded.

Dinner 9/11/1997

News: Pfalz Vineyard Classification

Four of the leading estates in the Pfalz region have introduced a classification of their best vineyards. The have also published a "Declaration of the Four about the Classification", inviting other estates to join their sheme, in order to extend the classification further. For more details follow the link, or go to to the Pfalz region page.

Loosen and others 23/10/1997

Ernst Loosen, much admired for his superb Mosel wines, has found a new challenge: since the 1996 vintage he is now also in charge of the J.L. Wolf estate in Wachenheim in the Pfalz. This estate has holdings in several of the Pfalz' finest vineyards. This was my fist encounter with these wines, and I have no doubt that this is a new star for the Palz region that will make headlines in the coming years. The dry Auslesen sell for just under 20DM, but that won't last long I fear.

Dinner 19/10/1997

Dinner 2/10/1997

News: VdP Nahe Vineyard Classification

The VdP growers association has been pushing the classification of Germanies vineyards for some time . Now the Nahe chapter has agreed on a classification that restricts severely the number of wines that members of the VdP are allowed to sell under a designated vineyard name in the region. No Grosslage names, and not all Einzellagenames are allowed. No grape variety other than Riesling can carry site names. Yields are restricted well below legal maxima. (The full information is given in the referenced section.) This all looks like a potential model for other German regions, and for growers outside the VdP, as it turns the use of site names on labels into something close to a guarantee of superior quality and typicity, without being so restrictive that it could be branded as "elitist". No doubt, it will still have its critics, in particular those who like to sell mass produced sugar water under meangless Grosslage names to uninformed consumers.

VDP Mosel-Saar-Ruwer Auction, Trier 24/09/97

Here are the prices, and my sketchy impressions from the MSR VdP auction. My notes and scores are compromised not only by inexperience, but also small samples (often just one sip) and a stressful context. So, I'll rate them conservatively as usual, and warn you not to attach too much weight to the numbers.
The wines were all Rieslings. The vintage is 1996 if not stated otherwise.

VDP Nahe & Ahr Auction Bad Kreuznach 20/09/97

The VDP Nahe/Ahr held its annual auction, where members of the organisation, that includes all the leading growers of those regions, bring their three best wines (in theory) to sell them to the highest bidder. The wines are sampled in quick succession while the auction is going on. One can taste them before the auction, but I didn't have the time to do so. Thus my comments and ratings are based on brief encounters with small samples in a somewhat stressful context. Take them with a good pinch of salt. The prices are gived in DM after my scores. Please note that auction prices are always higher than what one would pay for similar wines directly at the producer.

Ahr

If you you are looking for red wines that are light and elegant, rather than muscular and imposing, silky and fruity rather than tannic and brooding, and if your wallet sustains 2nd growth Bordeaux prices with a certain ease, then the Ahr auction might have been of interest to you. Unfortunately, I don't quite fit the above description perfectly.

Nahe

Three Eisweine were the stars of the show, all reaching similar prices. They proved that in the late frost around Christmas 1996 one could produce some huge wines. I found the dry Rieslings impossible to assess when they were served straight after an Eiswein. They tasted mostly harsh and bitter, but I cannot tell how much this is due to the context and how much inherent to the vintage, which I believe to be less than perfect for the dry style. I will refrain from scoring several such wines here.
The following are all Rieslings:

8/9/1997

1/9/1997

Two older Rieslings 23 & 30/8/1997

News: Schloss Vollrads Tragedy

Count Erwein Matuschka-Greiffenclau, the most prominent spokesman for fine German wine, owner of Schloss Vollrads and president of the Rheingau growers association, has committed suicide over the bankruptcy of his estate. The Schloss has been a flagship of German wine for centuries, and owned by the family for over 700 years. Wines of doubtful quality and economic troubles have given rise to speculation over the future of the estate for some time. Finally, bankruptcy has been declared, and after last years Schloss Groenestein the Rheingau looses an even more prominent estate, a clear sign of the state of crisis that this once world leading wine region is in. The Count has been a tireless promoter of Rheingau Riesling, and a leading head in devising new marketing strategies for fine German wine. He has failed though to turn around the fortunes of his own sinking ship, the once proud estate of Schloss Vollrads. A buyer has not come forward yet.

Thursday 14/8/1997

Dinner (plus one) 7/8/1997

The notes are from memory. The final wine was tasted on 10/6/97.

Down Under, July 1997

In case you worried why there were no tasting notes in July: I was in Australia and had other things to do than to drink German wine. But don't pity me ;-) they got some pretty nice Rieslings down under - to me the best value Aussie whites to be found. They are perfect for the climate, with their refreshing limey zip, and suit the local cuisine so much better than (more or less) oaky Chardonnays.
Shiraz is of course the glory of the country for reds, with Grange commanding prices higher than I've seen around here on occaison. The unsung heroes of the Australian wine industry though are the fortified wines. They can be gorgeous those Muscats and Tokays, the Tawnies and Vintage Ports, and even Sherries. Unfortunately this stuff is very rarely exported, and I guess the EC does mind some of those names on their labels. What a shame.

Academic tasting 26/6/1997

Thursday 12/6/1997

VdP presentation of the MSR '96 vintage 2/5/1997

The 96 vintage for Mosel-Saar-Ruwer looks better than I had expected. The cool growing season, with some fine warm autumn weather in October, has produced a small crop of wines, the best of which show cristal clear fruit and racy acidity. In some cases, esp. Saar and Ruwer, the acidity can be overpowering, and the dry wines are not very successful in general, with one notable exception. The strength of the vintage to me lies in fruity, crisp, pure, intense Kabinett to Auslese wines with some residual sugar, esp. from the middle Mosel area. Not many have succeeded in producing higher predicates than Auslese, but some did. Overall it seems like a good vintage, with some excellent wines to be found. To me, the best 96es I have seen come from Ernie Loosen and Theo Haart. Here are some selected sketchy notes.

Dinner 19/5/1997

A visit at Koehler-Ruprecht 8/5/1997

(Still suffering from a cold...) I didn't try any 96es, but according to Herr Philippi they are very exciting, and there is a descent amount of it too. The Pfalz certainly had the better end in 96. He thinks it's a kind of mix between 85 and 90, posing little problems for the growers. I tasted some 95s and they are very good too, but there's little of them due to rotten grapes that had to be discarded. They taste rounder than 94, but seem to have more grip than 93. The Saumagen Spätlese and Auslese trocken are superb, with the Auslese being particularly impressive, somewhat backward, with masses of concentrated minerally fruit (16+). A classic dry Saumagen Riesling from KR. If 96 is even better it must be quite something. Some highlights from older vintages have disappeared from the list meantime, esp the best dry Rieslings. Instead one can still buy a '76 Scheurebe BA at its original price, and it is in very good shape with medium sweet mature fruit. Non-dry Spätlesen are also still around back to the lovely mature 89 which I find irresistible to drink (15.5). The still unreleased reserve bottlings of dry 90s Rieslings (Auslese R, Spätlese RR) are being subscribed in significant numbers now. Those who want some should not wait until they are released next year.

A visit at Jordan & Jordan (Saar) 3/5/1997

I have a cold and didn't think I could do justice to the wines with detailed notes. So, here are some vague impressions only. The 95 Ockferner Bockstein Spät- and Auslese looked good. I have my doubts about the nearly dry tasting Scharzhofberger BA 95 that Peter Jordan made for private consumption. Definitely not what you expect from a German BA, it will with age probably taste more like a dry Sherry than a dessert wine. After that we went to the cellar and tried some 96es from the barrel - a quite severe experience. The vintage was too cool for the Saar, and Herr Jordan harvested little more that an uneconomical 30hl/ha on average. The wines have an enormous acidity, and will remain in cask to reduce it further. Peter Jordan rejects chemical or biological deacidification which other producers will be very tempted to use for their 96 wines. Commercial pressures favor growers who bottle early, and thus employ technical measures to make their wines appear more harmonious. One of the Scharzhofbergers got stuck in fermentation, and thus had noticeable residual sugar. It was clearly the most pleasing wine of the lot, and may be used to balance some of the otherwise rather severe dry Scharzhofbergers. No wine will be sold as Auslese in 96. Neither will there be an Eiswein, although some other growers have made Eiswein in 96 just before Christmas. We did taste a Braunfels Eiswein from 95 that was picked in early November 1995 and reached TBA level must weights. Made from healthy grapes, it's a massive, supercharged, sweet & saur, Saar Riesling of stunning concentration. We also tried two Scharzhofberger Auslese trocken: a 95 and a 93. The 95 was the second bottling of a 95 Auslese trocken which was left in cask for longer, and was less immediately appealing and harmonious than the first bottling (as I recall it). It is a more difficult wine to like, but may prove to be as good in the long run. Wait and see... The 93 was a little funny initially on the nose, but improved with air, and was brilliantly fresh and balanced on the palate. A superb wine that deservedly won the Feinschmecker Rieslingtrophy. Finally, a 96 rosé made from grapes that were not used for the red wine (which will not be sold before 98 as it is still in barrique) was by general consensus too sweet. The fermentation was stopped earlier than Peter Jordan would have liked, in retrospect. I certainly wasn't too keen on it, and some have gone much further in their condemnation. Ironically, it is the wine he finds most easy to sell...

Late night drink 16/4/1997

Dinner 13/4/1997

Some wines over easter 3/1997

Franken reds and others 25/3/1997

Pfälzer Weinmesse 23/3/1997

I attended this annual wine fair of the Pfalz for the first time. Dissapointingly, most of the top estates were not represented (like Köhler-Ruprecht, Müller-Catoir, Bürklin-Wolf, Biffar, Lingenfelder etc...). So this was the chance to see mainly how the average growers and cooperatives are doing these days. Barriques are everywhere now, and the results leave me pretty cold. Good reds remain very rare. Sparkling wines are generally unremarkably to unpleasant. The best Rieslings come from the usual suspects. Here are some sketchy notes on particular growers.

Pfalz/Alsace tasting 19/2/1997

Dinner Party 15/2/1997

Köln 8-9/2/1997