Jeff Grossman
Jeff Grossman
Walkaround event so walkaround tasting notes (0-3 plusses) plus some jots.
This year, the event was held in the ballroom of a midtown(ish) hotel, which is a much better space than the long skinny room that was Craft Restaurant. Those of us who attended the VIP hour received a warm welcome, a list of the wines offered, a little book to write in, and a lovely fountain pen. Food was provided by Pave (pave46.com) in the form of tables heaped with sliced cheeses and meats and breads, and one table up front with finger sandwiches, gougeres, and chocolate sable cookies.
As in past years almost all the tables are helmed by the winemakers themselves so the quality of chat is very good. Discussion and insights from the principals makes a real difference in understanding and appreciation.
I saw several of the usual wineaux there: Jayson, Seth, Robert, Marc, and at least one person who knew my name but I did not remember his. (I apologize for all my shortcomings.)
Onward.
Vintage Generalizations:
Aside from the VIP bottles, everybody was showing 2021, 2022, and/or 2023. We probably all know 2021 by now: a cool vintage like the old days, generally allowing the makers to make crisp, elegant wines with lots of terroir expression. Vintage 2022 is a total contrast: hot and droughty all year long, a cool and wet September saved it from despair but the wines are big and fruity and sweet and lower acid (and very little botrytis) unless the maker took extreme measures. Now we have 2023, a somewhat in-between year in Germany: still droughty but not so hot; in fact, a little inverted as it was cooler in the summer and warmer around harvest. Stylistically the wines are varied but maybe 2/3 chance that you get something elegant and properly zingy. In Austria, the year was considered normal.
Please note that I am more a Pradikat drinker than a Trocken drinker. I think sugar, in Kab/Spat quantities, activates riesling flavors and pumps them forward. I find very few trocken wines to be as flavorful, but I will say that there are trocken wines with excellent texture and balance. I just don't find as many as other people do!
Also, Marc Hanes has graciously allowed me to intersperse his jots with my jots so this post is extra jotty. Marc also keeps an eye on die Brieftasche so calls out when nice wines have prices more than a weeknight dinner might support.
Gemischter Tisch ("Wines of Germany")
Orphans sponsored by the importer, I suppose.
Gustavshof 2021 "Signatur" Trocken - 0
Leiner 2021 "Handwerk" Trocken - +
Karl Haidle 2021 "Ritzling" Trocken - 0
Kruger-Rumpf 2021 Dautenpflanzer GG - 0
Robert Weil 2021 Kabinett - +
Monchhof 2021 "Slate" Spatlese - 0
Alzinger | Austria, Wachau
2023 Hollerin Smaragd - (++) , skimpy fruit but very stony
2023 Hohereck Smaragd - (+)
2023 Loibenberg Smaragd - (+) , fatter but not better, might need to re-taste
2023 Steinertal Smaragd - (+) , fatter yet!
2019 Loibenberg Smaragd - VIP: ++ , yum
Marc writes:
2019 Loibenberg was a treat.
2023 Loibenberg Smaragd was quite nice but ~$64.
F.X. Pichler | Austria, Wachau
I asked how they were handling climate change. Lucas said that global warming mostly affected the gruner veltliner but that riesling handles it very well.
2023 GV Durnsteiner - +
2023 Loibner Burgstall - +
2022 Loibenberg GG - ++ , their warmest GG
2022 Steinertal GG - ++ , their coldest GG, more minerally
2021 "Unendlich" - VIP: +++ , wow
Marc writes:
Hard to argue with the lineup here.
2023 Loibenberg and Steinertal both great for different reasons. 2002 Loibenberg ~$81 so ain't going to taste again. Ditto Steinertal.
2021 Unendlich very good but maybe not up to rep?
Franz Hirtzberger | Austria, Wachau
Poured by the sommelier at Ilis, Steven Flores and his magnificent moustache!
2023 Steinterrassen Federspiel - (+)
2023 Setzberg Smaragd - +
2023 Steinporz Smaragd - +
2023 Singerreidel Smaragd - ++ , more complex, more open
2017 Singerreidel Smaragd - VIP: ++ , from magnum, chosen by Franz Hirtzberger because 2023 reminds him of 2017; indeed, very similar to the 2023 but even more powerful
Marc writes:
2023 Setzberg, Steinporz, Singerriedel all solid but not spectacular.
Koehler-Ruprecht | Germany, Pfalz
2021 Kallstadter Kabinett Trocken - 0
2022 Kreidkeller Kabinett Trocken - 0
2021 Saumagen Kabinett Trocken - (+)
2021 Saumagen Spatlese Trocken - +
2016 Saumagen "R" Auslese Trocken - VIP: 0 , heavy texture, cheesey, not for me
Marc writes:
Only one I really liked was the 2021 Saumagen Spatlese Trocken but never keen on this producer.
Lukas Hammelmann | Germany, Pfalz
Started just a few years ago, Lukas has acquired some nice vineyards, though not all in one place!
2023 Blanc de Noir "Casselin" - + , very pleasant and aromatic, the vines are too young for sparkling wine so he presses and gets them off the skins quickly
2023 "Zimkaes" Trocken - 0
2023 "Dhochsaat" Trocken - + , vivid palate, herbal mid-palate is interesting and different
2022 Schlossberg Trocken - + , matchsticky, good wine under it though
2022 "Wilhelm Friedrich" - VIP: +++ , GG-ish but made in his grandfather's style; warm and sweet and just enough acidity to make it sound
Marc writes:
The 2023 Zimkaes Trocken was nice. $44 is pushing it.
The 2022 Schlossberg Trocken was my fave.
Karthäuserhof | Germany, Ruwer
The "Bruno" and "Schieferkristall" are made from bought grapes hence they have a different label from the other bottles, which are made with estate fruit.
2021 "Bruno" Trocken - 0
2021 "Schieferkristall" Trocken - (+)
2021 Alte Reben Trocken - + , left on the full lees
2021 Karthauserhof Kabinett - (++) , excellent balance and interest
2022 Karthauserhofberg GG - VIP: + , the warmer vintage really shows here, lime scent is too strong
Marc writes:
Little disappointed here.
2021 Alte Reben decent enough.
The 2021 Karthauserhofberg Kabinett was very good but I like residual sugar. Couple of places have it in $40-45 range. This could get finger on trigger.
Lauer | Germany, Saar
2014 "Senior" - +++ , poured from double magnum, beautiful, 10 years of age is its first plateau
2023 Feils GG - 0 , good nose but no palate presence?
2023 "Stirn" Feinherb - ++ , this is the one I know and like, much fuller
2023 "Kern" Feinherb - + , smoky nose, tropical in the mouth, hard to understand today
(no VIP)
Marc writes:
Had a decent amount of Lauer in my day, very much like them but never totally blown away.
Best to me here was the 2023 Stirn Feinherb (Feinherb pushing it). Not available yet, looks like pricing will be near $50. Could possibly do that.
Loewen | Germany, Mosel
The prize property here is the "1896 Vineyard", planted you-know-when, bought from Schmitt-Wagner in 2008. Loewen is also pleased to have vines in Ritsch, a hill loaded with thick plates of quartzite, a much tougher stone than slate so the vines work harder to bear fruit there (and, consequently, give more interesting berries).
2023 Max. Herrenberg "1896" A.R. - + , lovely texture
2023 Ritsch GG - + , this has a lot more zing! good at the price point
2023 Herrenberg Kabinett - (++) , block-picked so the sugar level is his best guess of the average ripeness; interesting technique as a broader range of flavors is possible
2023 Ritsch Auslese - ++ , this is a delicate and delectable auslese; it's Ritsch so probably sweeter than I think but this is ethereal
2023 "1896" - VIP: + , made in a style as close to 1896 technology as possible: he uses a refurbished wooden basket press, a 70-year-old fuder, etc.
Marc writes:
Better than expected.
No clunkers but liked 2023 Herrenberg Kabinett and 2023 Ritsch Auslese best. Theme developing? Kabinett under $30, I might actually buy! Auslese about $55, hard to say.
Schloss Lieser | Germany, Mosel
2023 Helden GG - + , 4g RS (for those keeping sugar score for trocken wines)
2021 Goldtropfchen Feinherb - (++) , 18g RS, middling sweet for a feinherb but the wine has an extra gear: a yellow-fruited thrum in the mid-palate; this is a one-off wine as the family just noticed that the wine was in really good shape so stopped the fermentation and bottled it up
2023 Juffer Kabinett - + , 40g RS, stinky nose but good on the palate
2023 Helden Auslese GK - +++
2019 Domprobst Kabinett Auction - VIP: ++++ , the scale does not go to four...; they only have a small holding in Domprobst but it is so strong so vivid that it is almost always chosen for the auction bottling
Marc writes:
Solid lineup.
2023 Juffer Kabinett and the 2023 Helden Auslese GK great. Bonus auction pour too. Kabinett around or under $35 so possible buy.
J.J. Prüm | Germany, Mosel
All poured from magnums!
2023 Himmelreich Kabinett - 0 , did not show well, whether the vineyard, the vintage, or the bottle I cannot say
2023 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Kabinett - (+) , Katharina poured the wine and I asked about the RS. She asked me to guess before she answered. The wine is a little limp, a little funky (not a spoilage funk, more like simple syrup), yet still kinda sweet so I know it's more than I want. I had just had a similar experience at another table and I got the number there. And I am kinda good at this. I say it's 40g and she says yes.
2022 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese - +++ , wow wine, intense, registers high acid and moderate sugar; maybe this will be too sweet eventually but what a pleasure today
2023 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese - +++ , not only wow, but with armor buckled on for the long haul
2023 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese GK - VIP: ++++ , the scale does not go to four...; titanic
Marc writes:
Maybe too young but left flat by whole lineup, shocked.
The 2023 Wehl. Sonnenuhr Auslese GK was great though.
Rebholz | Germany, Pfalz
Keller | Germany, Rheinhessen
Emrich-Schönleber | Germany, Nahe
Egon Müller | Germany, Saar
Julian Haart | Germany, Mosel
No visit (either I wasn't going to fight the crowds or I ran out of time)
Marc writes:
Rebholz
Ehh, another producer that does not sing to me.
Keller
Skipped, not worth the hassle.
Emrich-Schonleber
The 2023 Estate Trocken was decent but liked the 2023 Halgans better. MWC has the 2017 in stock for $48.99 plus my 25% employee discount!
Egon Muller
This arguably could be the "lineup" of the day for me.
2023 Scharzhofberg Kabinett great but Spatlese off the chart.
Ditto for the 2023 Braune Kupp Kabinett and Spatlese. 2018 Auslese right up my alley too.
Of course the prices are baller only.
Julian Haart
Underwhelmed.
The 2023 Rote Erden was okay but not for $50+. The 2022 Goldtropfchen GG fave of the lineup.
---
Final Thoughts:
Compared to the pre-pandemic RFs, I like the organization of this one better, though I think the impersonal setting may have hindered conversation a little. The regularity of the tables and the spaces was monotone, and none of the makers brought slide shows or rock dioramas. And a few big personalities were not in attendance. Oh, well. As to the wines, I was pleased with all the VIP bottles (but, then, that's the draw!). I was surprised how much I liked Loewen + Ritsch + 2023, and also Prum + 2022. My vintage and RS prejudices were mostly reinforced but it was good for me to try a bunch of trocken wines (50 million Germans can't be wrong, or something like that) and also try the two most-recent vintages (even if they probably don't oblige my personal preferences).
Marc writes:
Fun event, got to try some wines I don't get exposed to. Allowing for finances, two potential purchases. Good thing Jay didn't go. "Oh, my!"
Many thanks to Stephen Bitterolf and Vom Boden for organizing a great event, and to the various sponsors (Pave, Lamy, Zwiesel, Hotel Chelsea, Wines of Germany) for helping to make it all possible. AND all the unnamed sommeliers, importer folks, and others who donated their time and effort.
For more about the makers, try this.
This year, the event was held in the ballroom of a midtown(ish) hotel, which is a much better space than the long skinny room that was Craft Restaurant. Those of us who attended the VIP hour received a warm welcome, a list of the wines offered, a little book to write in, and a lovely fountain pen. Food was provided by Pave (pave46.com) in the form of tables heaped with sliced cheeses and meats and breads, and one table up front with finger sandwiches, gougeres, and chocolate sable cookies.
As in past years almost all the tables are helmed by the winemakers themselves so the quality of chat is very good. Discussion and insights from the principals makes a real difference in understanding and appreciation.
I saw several of the usual wineaux there: Jayson, Seth, Robert, Marc, and at least one person who knew my name but I did not remember his. (I apologize for all my shortcomings.)
Onward.
Vintage Generalizations:
Aside from the VIP bottles, everybody was showing 2021, 2022, and/or 2023. We probably all know 2021 by now: a cool vintage like the old days, generally allowing the makers to make crisp, elegant wines with lots of terroir expression. Vintage 2022 is a total contrast: hot and droughty all year long, a cool and wet September saved it from despair but the wines are big and fruity and sweet and lower acid (and very little botrytis) unless the maker took extreme measures. Now we have 2023, a somewhat in-between year in Germany: still droughty but not so hot; in fact, a little inverted as it was cooler in the summer and warmer around harvest. Stylistically the wines are varied but maybe 2/3 chance that you get something elegant and properly zingy. In Austria, the year was considered normal.
Please note that I am more a Pradikat drinker than a Trocken drinker. I think sugar, in Kab/Spat quantities, activates riesling flavors and pumps them forward. I find very few trocken wines to be as flavorful, but I will say that there are trocken wines with excellent texture and balance. I just don't find as many as other people do!
Also, Marc Hanes has graciously allowed me to intersperse his jots with my jots so this post is extra jotty. Marc also keeps an eye on die Brieftasche so calls out when nice wines have prices more than a weeknight dinner might support.
Gemischter Tisch ("Wines of Germany")
Orphans sponsored by the importer, I suppose.
Gustavshof 2021 "Signatur" Trocken - 0
Leiner 2021 "Handwerk" Trocken - +
Karl Haidle 2021 "Ritzling" Trocken - 0
Kruger-Rumpf 2021 Dautenpflanzer GG - 0
Robert Weil 2021 Kabinett - +
Monchhof 2021 "Slate" Spatlese - 0
Alzinger | Austria, Wachau
2023 Hollerin Smaragd - (++) , skimpy fruit but very stony
2023 Hohereck Smaragd - (+)
2023 Loibenberg Smaragd - (+) , fatter but not better, might need to re-taste
2023 Steinertal Smaragd - (+) , fatter yet!
2019 Loibenberg Smaragd - VIP: ++ , yum
Marc writes:
2019 Loibenberg was a treat.
2023 Loibenberg Smaragd was quite nice but ~$64.
F.X. Pichler | Austria, Wachau
I asked how they were handling climate change. Lucas said that global warming mostly affected the gruner veltliner but that riesling handles it very well.
2023 GV Durnsteiner - +
2023 Loibner Burgstall - +
2022 Loibenberg GG - ++ , their warmest GG
2022 Steinertal GG - ++ , their coldest GG, more minerally
2021 "Unendlich" - VIP: +++ , wow
Marc writes:
Hard to argue with the lineup here.
2023 Loibenberg and Steinertal both great for different reasons. 2002 Loibenberg ~$81 so ain't going to taste again. Ditto Steinertal.
2021 Unendlich very good but maybe not up to rep?
Franz Hirtzberger | Austria, Wachau
Poured by the sommelier at Ilis, Steven Flores and his magnificent moustache!
2023 Steinterrassen Federspiel - (+)
2023 Setzberg Smaragd - +
2023 Steinporz Smaragd - +
2023 Singerreidel Smaragd - ++ , more complex, more open
2017 Singerreidel Smaragd - VIP: ++ , from magnum, chosen by Franz Hirtzberger because 2023 reminds him of 2017; indeed, very similar to the 2023 but even more powerful
Marc writes:
2023 Setzberg, Steinporz, Singerriedel all solid but not spectacular.
Koehler-Ruprecht | Germany, Pfalz
2021 Kallstadter Kabinett Trocken - 0
2022 Kreidkeller Kabinett Trocken - 0
2021 Saumagen Kabinett Trocken - (+)
2021 Saumagen Spatlese Trocken - +
2016 Saumagen "R" Auslese Trocken - VIP: 0 , heavy texture, cheesey, not for me
Marc writes:
Only one I really liked was the 2021 Saumagen Spatlese Trocken but never keen on this producer.
Lukas Hammelmann | Germany, Pfalz
Started just a few years ago, Lukas has acquired some nice vineyards, though not all in one place!
2023 Blanc de Noir "Casselin" - + , very pleasant and aromatic, the vines are too young for sparkling wine so he presses and gets them off the skins quickly
2023 "Zimkaes" Trocken - 0
2023 "Dhochsaat" Trocken - + , vivid palate, herbal mid-palate is interesting and different
2022 Schlossberg Trocken - + , matchsticky, good wine under it though
2022 "Wilhelm Friedrich" - VIP: +++ , GG-ish but made in his grandfather's style; warm and sweet and just enough acidity to make it sound
Marc writes:
The 2023 Zimkaes Trocken was nice. $44 is pushing it.
The 2022 Schlossberg Trocken was my fave.
Karthäuserhof | Germany, Ruwer
The "Bruno" and "Schieferkristall" are made from bought grapes hence they have a different label from the other bottles, which are made with estate fruit.
2021 "Bruno" Trocken - 0
2021 "Schieferkristall" Trocken - (+)
2021 Alte Reben Trocken - + , left on the full lees
2021 Karthauserhof Kabinett - (++) , excellent balance and interest
2022 Karthauserhofberg GG - VIP: + , the warmer vintage really shows here, lime scent is too strong
Marc writes:
Little disappointed here.
2021 Alte Reben decent enough.
The 2021 Karthauserhofberg Kabinett was very good but I like residual sugar. Couple of places have it in $40-45 range. This could get finger on trigger.
Lauer | Germany, Saar
2014 "Senior" - +++ , poured from double magnum, beautiful, 10 years of age is its first plateau
2023 Feils GG - 0 , good nose but no palate presence?
2023 "Stirn" Feinherb - ++ , this is the one I know and like, much fuller
2023 "Kern" Feinherb - + , smoky nose, tropical in the mouth, hard to understand today
(no VIP)
Marc writes:
Had a decent amount of Lauer in my day, very much like them but never totally blown away.
Best to me here was the 2023 Stirn Feinherb (Feinherb pushing it). Not available yet, looks like pricing will be near $50. Could possibly do that.
Loewen | Germany, Mosel
The prize property here is the "1896 Vineyard", planted you-know-when, bought from Schmitt-Wagner in 2008. Loewen is also pleased to have vines in Ritsch, a hill loaded with thick plates of quartzite, a much tougher stone than slate so the vines work harder to bear fruit there (and, consequently, give more interesting berries).
2023 Max. Herrenberg "1896" A.R. - + , lovely texture
2023 Ritsch GG - + , this has a lot more zing! good at the price point
2023 Herrenberg Kabinett - (++) , block-picked so the sugar level is his best guess of the average ripeness; interesting technique as a broader range of flavors is possible
2023 Ritsch Auslese - ++ , this is a delicate and delectable auslese; it's Ritsch so probably sweeter than I think but this is ethereal
2023 "1896" - VIP: + , made in a style as close to 1896 technology as possible: he uses a refurbished wooden basket press, a 70-year-old fuder, etc.
Marc writes:
Better than expected.
No clunkers but liked 2023 Herrenberg Kabinett and 2023 Ritsch Auslese best. Theme developing? Kabinett under $30, I might actually buy! Auslese about $55, hard to say.
Schloss Lieser | Germany, Mosel
2023 Helden GG - + , 4g RS (for those keeping sugar score for trocken wines)
2021 Goldtropfchen Feinherb - (++) , 18g RS, middling sweet for a feinherb but the wine has an extra gear: a yellow-fruited thrum in the mid-palate; this is a one-off wine as the family just noticed that the wine was in really good shape so stopped the fermentation and bottled it up
2023 Juffer Kabinett - + , 40g RS, stinky nose but good on the palate
2023 Helden Auslese GK - +++
2019 Domprobst Kabinett Auction - VIP: ++++ , the scale does not go to four...; they only have a small holding in Domprobst but it is so strong so vivid that it is almost always chosen for the auction bottling
Marc writes:
Solid lineup.
2023 Juffer Kabinett and the 2023 Helden Auslese GK great. Bonus auction pour too. Kabinett around or under $35 so possible buy.
J.J. Prüm | Germany, Mosel
All poured from magnums!
2023 Himmelreich Kabinett - 0 , did not show well, whether the vineyard, the vintage, or the bottle I cannot say
2023 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Kabinett - (+) , Katharina poured the wine and I asked about the RS. She asked me to guess before she answered. The wine is a little limp, a little funky (not a spoilage funk, more like simple syrup), yet still kinda sweet so I know it's more than I want. I had just had a similar experience at another table and I got the number there. And I am kinda good at this. I say it's 40g and she says yes.
2022 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese - +++ , wow wine, intense, registers high acid and moderate sugar; maybe this will be too sweet eventually but what a pleasure today
2023 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese - +++ , not only wow, but with armor buckled on for the long haul
2023 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese GK - VIP: ++++ , the scale does not go to four...; titanic
Marc writes:
Maybe too young but left flat by whole lineup, shocked.
The 2023 Wehl. Sonnenuhr Auslese GK was great though.
Rebholz | Germany, Pfalz
Keller | Germany, Rheinhessen
Emrich-Schönleber | Germany, Nahe
Egon Müller | Germany, Saar
Julian Haart | Germany, Mosel
No visit (either I wasn't going to fight the crowds or I ran out of time)
Marc writes:
Rebholz
Ehh, another producer that does not sing to me.
Keller
Skipped, not worth the hassle.
Emrich-Schonleber
The 2023 Estate Trocken was decent but liked the 2023 Halgans better. MWC has the 2017 in stock for $48.99 plus my 25% employee discount!
Egon Muller
This arguably could be the "lineup" of the day for me.
2023 Scharzhofberg Kabinett great but Spatlese off the chart.
Ditto for the 2023 Braune Kupp Kabinett and Spatlese. 2018 Auslese right up my alley too.
Of course the prices are baller only.
Julian Haart
Underwhelmed.
The 2023 Rote Erden was okay but not for $50+. The 2022 Goldtropfchen GG fave of the lineup.
---
Final Thoughts:
Compared to the pre-pandemic RFs, I like the organization of this one better, though I think the impersonal setting may have hindered conversation a little. The regularity of the tables and the spaces was monotone, and none of the makers brought slide shows or rock dioramas. And a few big personalities were not in attendance. Oh, well. As to the wines, I was pleased with all the VIP bottles (but, then, that's the draw!). I was surprised how much I liked Loewen + Ritsch + 2023, and also Prum + 2022. My vintage and RS prejudices were mostly reinforced but it was good for me to try a bunch of trocken wines (50 million Germans can't be wrong, or something like that) and also try the two most-recent vintages (even if they probably don't oblige my personal preferences).
Marc writes:
Fun event, got to try some wines I don't get exposed to. Allowing for finances, two potential purchases. Good thing Jay didn't go. "Oh, my!"
Many thanks to Stephen Bitterolf and Vom Boden for organizing a great event, and to the various sponsors (Pave, Lamy, Zwiesel, Hotel Chelsea, Wines of Germany) for helping to make it all possible. AND all the unnamed sommeliers, importer folks, and others who donated their time and effort.
For more about the makers, try this.