No contest riesling: Wasenhaus vs. Ruck

R

Rahsaan

Rahsaan
It wasn’t fair.

Wasenhaus is not exactly known for Riesling. And the short retailer summary of the 2020 Wasenhaus Riesling was that it was ‘more Wasenhaus than Riesling’. Which should have been a warning, as that is usually not a good sign for me. But I was curious. So I laid down my 50 euros and later opened a sour pungent blob of natty wine that offered me no pleasure.

Thankfully, the basic 2022 Johann Ruck Iphöfer Riesling Trocken was also on the table. A classic Franken pleasure. Firm and deep for the level, does a great job of balancing sturdiness/guts and freshness/juiciness, while also providing lovely minerality and fragrance to add nuance. Correct and interesting. All for less than 10 euros.

Sometimes wine math is funny.
 
originally posted by Rahsaan:
No contest riesling: Wasenhaus vs. RuckIt wasn’t fair.

Wasenhaus is not exactly known for Riesling. And the short retailer summary of the 2020 Wasenhaus Riesling was that it was ‘more Wasenhaus than Riesling’. Which should have been a warning, as that is usually not a good sign for me. But I was curious. So I laid down my 50 euros and later opened a sour pungent blob of natty wine that offered me no pleasure.

Thankfully, the basic 2022 Johann Ruck Iphöfer Riesling Trocken was also on the table. A classic Franken pleasure. Firm and deep for the level, does a great job of balancing sturdiness/guts and freshness/juiciness, while also providing lovely minerality and fragrance to add nuance. Correct and interesting. All for less than 10 euros.

Sometimes wine math is funny.
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I often find it fun how wine math is funny. But there's not much fun in 50 euros for a bottle that doesn't offer any pleasure.
 
originally posted by John M:
...But there's not much fun in 50 euros for a bottle that doesn't offer any pleasure.
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Indeed. I just checked and it was actually 58 euros, but I didn't get too bent out of shape because I knew it was a 'risky' purchase, so I went in with my eyes open.

I guess we all have our own calculations for balancing risky and sure-fire pleasure purchases.

Sometimes when I go for the risk, I have the added justification of helping support the winemaker/store, to keep the whole business churning. In this case, the Wasenhaus wines seem to sell just fine without me. Although (for reasons that are now obvious), I think this Riesling is lingering longer on the shelf than the other bottlings.
 
originally posted by Claude Kolm:
I love Ruck's wines, but I think they are almost unknown outside of Franken.
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Yes, I don't have the best sense, but clearly Franken doesn't have the best marketing machine. Can't say that I've seen Ruck in the US, but they certainly have a reputation that extends beyond Franken in Germany.

You might have more of a sense of the history. Not sure if the Franken bocksbeutel held them back from broader marketing. Certainly enough attractive wines.
 
I don't think most of the producers are much interested in selling beyond Franken. They can sell all they want, and I think many of their customers like the Bocksbeutel. Those that actively want an international market have been rapidly shifting to Burgundy bottles.
 
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