Zusslin Crmant dAlsace Brut (Alsace) If stones shed their skins, they could have been fermented into a wine much like this. Sharp and hollow, with traces of apple and a loose froth. Lacks presence. (12/08)
Schoffit 1997 Riesling Harth Cuve Prestige (Alsace) Windblown sand and dust, but old dust. Intense, with surprisingly good acidity (neither the site nor the year are exactly known for crispness), with tart melon rind dominated. The finish is sharply attenuated, and dries out rather quickly. And so, the wine ends up a little disappointing. (12/08)
Schoffit 1997 Riesling Rangen de Thann Clos Saint-Thobald (Alsace) Brown, volcanic, and ancient. A fossil in amber. The cork seems fine plump, moist, minor staining only on the bottom but clearly something went massively wrong here. An eighty-year-old riesling unearthed from someones basement. (12/08)
Leitz 2007 Rdesheimer Berg Rottland Riesling Sptlese Trocken Alte Reben (Goldkapsel) 014 08 (Rheingau) Tastes Austrian, in a diffident sort of way. Not particularly precise, but instead rather creamy, with intensity and power both present and in reserve. A solid block of riesling. Let it age. (12/08)
Selbach-Oster 2007 Zeltinger Schlossberg Riesling Sptlese Schmitt 020 08 (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer) Electric green apple soda. Lightly sweet, with makrut lime lacings. Flawless balance and poise. A really gorgeous wine. Wow! (12/08)
Dnnhoff 2003 Norheimer Kirschheck Riesling Sptlese 005 04 (Nahe) Tangerine fatness at first sniff, which firms up to a long, columnar midpalate with only a little clinging fat. The finish is short. Everything in this wine happens way up front, and while its not bad for an 03, its a little like a tin recreation of a riesling rather than the real thing. Eh. (12/08)
Christoffel Erben 1997 Erdener Treppchen Riesling Auslese ** 09 98 (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer) Extremely creamy, as these wines tend to be. Full of orange sorbet, smoothed out to remove the crystallization, and while theres not enough nerve to prevent the drying finish from turning a little bloated, its definitely an OK wine. Just not really beyond that. (12/08)
Franz Karl Schmitt 1996 Niersteiner Pettenthal Riesling Auslese 10 97 (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer) Moderately sweet. Lime, green apple, limestone, and shards of metalperhaps mostly iron. Yet, in the end, not all that interesting. (12/08)
Kreydenweiss 1997 Riesling Wiebelsberg Vendanges Tardives (Alsace) Hand-carried from the domaine, carefully cellared, andcorked. Ugh. (12/08)
Schoenheitz 1998 Riesling Herrenreben Vendanges Tardives (Alsace) Not all that sweet, in what used to be the traditional style for Alsatian VTs, with a stark, arctic character. This could be a lot more generous, but its possible that the wines just closed up. The finish is pretty short, though, and so Im not overly optimistic. (12/08)
Schoffit 1997 Riesling Harth Cuve Prestige (Alsace) Windblown sand and dust, but old dust. Intense, with surprisingly good acidity (neither the site nor the year are exactly known for crispness), with tart melon rind dominated. The finish is sharply attenuated, and dries out rather quickly. And so, the wine ends up a little disappointing. (12/08)
Schoffit 1997 Riesling Rangen de Thann Clos Saint-Thobald (Alsace) Brown, volcanic, and ancient. A fossil in amber. The cork seems fine plump, moist, minor staining only on the bottom but clearly something went massively wrong here. An eighty-year-old riesling unearthed from someones basement. (12/08)
Leitz 2007 Rdesheimer Berg Rottland Riesling Sptlese Trocken Alte Reben (Goldkapsel) 014 08 (Rheingau) Tastes Austrian, in a diffident sort of way. Not particularly precise, but instead rather creamy, with intensity and power both present and in reserve. A solid block of riesling. Let it age. (12/08)
Selbach-Oster 2007 Zeltinger Schlossberg Riesling Sptlese Schmitt 020 08 (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer) Electric green apple soda. Lightly sweet, with makrut lime lacings. Flawless balance and poise. A really gorgeous wine. Wow! (12/08)
Dnnhoff 2003 Norheimer Kirschheck Riesling Sptlese 005 04 (Nahe) Tangerine fatness at first sniff, which firms up to a long, columnar midpalate with only a little clinging fat. The finish is short. Everything in this wine happens way up front, and while its not bad for an 03, its a little like a tin recreation of a riesling rather than the real thing. Eh. (12/08)
Christoffel Erben 1997 Erdener Treppchen Riesling Auslese ** 09 98 (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer) Extremely creamy, as these wines tend to be. Full of orange sorbet, smoothed out to remove the crystallization, and while theres not enough nerve to prevent the drying finish from turning a little bloated, its definitely an OK wine. Just not really beyond that. (12/08)
Franz Karl Schmitt 1996 Niersteiner Pettenthal Riesling Auslese 10 97 (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer) Moderately sweet. Lime, green apple, limestone, and shards of metalperhaps mostly iron. Yet, in the end, not all that interesting. (12/08)
Kreydenweiss 1997 Riesling Wiebelsberg Vendanges Tardives (Alsace) Hand-carried from the domaine, carefully cellared, andcorked. Ugh. (12/08)
Schoenheitz 1998 Riesling Herrenreben Vendanges Tardives (Alsace) Not all that sweet, in what used to be the traditional style for Alsatian VTs, with a stark, arctic character. This could be a lot more generous, but its possible that the wines just closed up. The finish is pretty short, though, and so Im not overly optimistic. (12/08)