Nahe Riesling 2017: Chills and Thrills
Kruger-Rumpf
Spätlese Scheurebe 2017
This smells intensely of sage and sage flowers, along with passion fruit, grapefruit and elder flower. (“I am Scheurebe, hear me roar!”) Given such a resounding opening gambit, the wine proves (relatively!) discreet on the polished palate, turning in a coolingly minty and melony direction while preserving such luscious fruit as well as herbal pungency as the aromas promised. The terrifically-sustained finish is infectiously juicy, exhibiting overt but perfectly-integrated and supportive sweetness. Sage, grapefruit zest and smoky black tea accents serve for invigorating counterpoint. On occasion, the Rumpfs have demonstrated that these vines in the Dautenpflänzer can yield Scheurebe capable of playing in the Pfeffingen or Müller-Catoir league – and this is one of those delicious occasions. (On the heels of this beauty – on November 2, 2018 – I tasted a dry 2018 Scheurebe trocken, from fruit harvested in mid-September, that was already improbably delicious; but the Dautenpflänzer Scheurebe grapes from 2018 had been picked only a few days before I visited!) (David Schildknecht, Vinous, April 2019) — 6 years ago
Weingut Hexamer
Meddersheimer Rheingrafenberg Spätlese Riesling 2017
As usual, this is the one dry Hexamer wine to perpetuate the tradition of Prädikat, and that is done solely to satisfy the Norwegian importer who takes all of it. (All to one country, yes; but this has become a high-volume cuvée by estate standards.) The fruit comes from the Eisendell as well as from a site known as Grosser Stein for the huge stone that marked the boundary between the holdings of the Rheingrafen (counts) and those of the Disibodenberg monastery. Picked nearly a month earlier than was the highly-impressive 2016, this weighs-in at 11.9% alcohol, and that shows in an attractive sense of levity and spring vis-à-vis Hexamer’s other dry Rieslings of this vintage. Fresh lime, apple, piquant aromas as well as a juicy, crisp-edged and pip-tinged presence on the glossy palate serve for penetrating. Subtly bitter but cooling and stimulating notes of melon rind compound the sense of crunch and piquancy while lovely, bittersweet inner-mouth perfume adds allure. The combination of vivacity and refreshment with floral and mineral intrigue renders the buoyant, bell-clear, seriously-sustained finish next-sip compelling. (David Schildknecht, Vinous, April 2019) — 6 years ago
Emrich-Schönleber
Halenberg GG Riesling 2017
The nose is dominated by intimations of red currant, red raspberry, lime and grapefruit; though, to be sure, there are also intimations of marine salinity and crushed stone. Once the wine hits your palate, there is a near-electric spark and a rush of bright juiciness allied to mouthwatering salinity and invigorating crystalline stony impingements. There’s also a suggestion of bittersweet inner-mouth florality more typical for Frühlingsplätzchen. A sense of tightly-coiled energy is allied to silken texture and a sense of buoyancy improbable for such a palpably extract-rich wine of around 12.5% alcohol. The vibrant, refreshing, multi-faceted finish delivers tingling, crunchy fresh fruit and myriad mineral notes, tugging not just on the salivary glands but on the cheeks and mandible. (David Schildknecht, Vinous, April 2019) — 6 years ago
Dönnhoff
Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Spätlese Riesling 2017
Lily perfume on the nose of this Hermannshöhle reminds me both of the corresponding 2016 and of this year’s Kirschheck. That is accompanied by ripe, fresh and high-toned, distillate-like notes of pear and quince. The glossy palate is lusciously fruited, billowingly perfumed, as well as seductively glossy and creamy in texture. Piquancy of pear pip and hints of anise add counterpoint, while fresh grapefruit and white peach contribute welcomed bright juiciness en route to a ravishingly-sustained, impeccably-balanced finish. The covering term “mineral” will for now have to serve the strikingly transparent finish, which becomes more intriguing the longer the wine takes on air. (David Schildknecht, Vinous, April 2019) — 6 years ago
Weingut Jakob Schneider
Niederhauser Klamm Kabinett Riesling 2017
This bottling was reduced in volume not only directly by frost but also by Schneider having utilized some of the fruit from his “Kabinett” parcels in this year’s dry Klamm bottling. But he says he might do the same thing another year, because demand for Kabinett, indeed for sweet wine generally, continues to fall-off at his estate. Apple and pear are wreathed in honeysuckle on a fetching nose, and the palate displays correspondingly luscious fruit juiciness as well as wafting inner-mouth perfume, both reinforced by judicious sweetness. There is an impressive sense of extract-richness despite the wine’s sense of lift. A bright, zesty influx of fresh lime lends refreshment and tang to the lingering finish. (David Schildknecht, Vinous, April 2019) — 6 years ago
Delectable Wine
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From mature stands of vines, largely in the Stromberg, this was harvested around a week ahead of the corresponding Grosses Gewächs. Crushed stone is suggested already on the nose, along with pit-tinged peach and zesty grapefruit. The palpably dense palate displays strong piquancy and palpable stone suffusion to complement its rich, generously-juicy fruit. The bright finish, in typical Schäfer-Fröhlich fashion, really gets a purchase on the salivary glands. (David Schildknecht, Vinous, April 2019) — 6 years ago