German Wine

Expert Review - Vintage 2016

92 Points Wine Enthusiast | Hints of crushed mineral and fresh herb persist from nose to finish in this intriguingly earthy yet elegant dry wine. The palate is vibrantly citrusy, offering shards of lemon and lime accented by dried-orange peel and spice. Medium bodied but silky in texture, it's freshened by pert lime acidity.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2018 

95 Points James Suckling | At once delicately spicy, but well-structured with so many subtle nuances, this is a very sophisticated Spatlese with only a hint of sweetness. Very long, spicy and smoky finish, and just beginning to open up. Drink or hold. (2018).

94+ Points Robert Parker | The 2018 Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Spätlese is precise and remarkably refined on the subtle yet complex, terroir-driven and slightly flinty nose. Rich and piquant on the palate, with a vital acidity exposition and crunchy grip, this is a serious and sustainably structured Spätlese from "the other" Sonnenuhr. The finish is so mineral that it tastes almost dry and if not now in 10 or 20 years. This is a great ZSU to be served in a decade or two. Tasted at the domain in September 2020.

Winemaker Description 

On the nose, juicy scents and earthy spices fill up the glass. On the palate, a refreshing mineral character. Pair this Riesling with spicy Asian cuisine, poultry, or fish dishes. Winemaker Description. 

Expert Reviews- Vintage 2020 

95+ Points Wine Advocate |  Entirely vinified in large, partly renewed oak, the 2020 Kiedrich Gräfenberg Riesling Trocken GG opens deep, pure, refined but also very intense and complex on the highly attractive nose that is full, generous and aromatic and reveals more oak aromas than the premiers crus Klosterberg and Turmberg. On the palate, this is a very elegant, refined and balanced Riesling with a sweeter or rounder taste than the Turmberg (although it's analytically less sweet), but it reveals a similar saline vibrancy. The richer and rounder sensation might be due to the loess-loam components of the Gräfenberg phyllite terroir compared to the shallower terroir of the Turmberg, but richness and power are the nature of the Gräfenberg, which is still fresh and refined enough to represent its coolish terroir character as well. Since the 2020 will be released only in September 2022 (so 12 months later than former vintages), I assume it will become brighter, finer and purer over the next 12 months.

Wine Spectator 90 Points | A flinty, compact version, evoking apple, lemon, white pepper and stone flavors. Bracing on the finish, where the lemon and stone elements persist. Drink now through 2032. 3,000 cases made.

Winemaker Description 

The Erden Prälat is the smallest grand cru vineyard in the Mosel with around 1.5 hectares of steep slopes. The label with the monk is reserved only for wines from this vineyard. Pristine aromas of very ripe pear, apple, and honey melon, slight salinity and dark earthy notes typical for the Prälat.

On the palate concentrated and wide, juicy, candied ginger, sweet lime, white pepper, with an excellent backbone of acidity, which keeps this wine fresh and full of tension for decades to come, long finish. 

Winemaker Description

Delicate, micro-production & precise øø wines from Baden, Germany, rapturously referred to as the hot-bed of classic Burgundy-indebted Pinot Noir. (and, of course, Riesling)

Philipp Reiß is currently in the process of converting his family estate from grape growers to wine producers, and these are the first, errr - fruits of that labor to make it stateside. 

A profound expression of Riesling that, despite having zero additives, sure calls for a decant and some hours for it to truly unfurl its majestic crystalline reach.

Expert Review - Vintage 2022

Vinous 93 Points | The 2022 Riesling Wiltinger Braune Kupp Spätlese opens with a ripe green-red apple flesh note with overtones of candied angelica and earth after summer rain. The palate almost has an iron-oxide edge framing that juicy ripe red apple fruit soon verging into greengage compote. Ripe lemon pervades all and illuminates a fine smooth texture reminiscent of very fine earth saturated with all that lovely fruit emanating from it. (Sweet) (Drink between 2025-2060)

Expert Review - Vintage 2021

91 Points James Suckling | Enveloping nose of poached pear and fresh mirabelle. Very rich and juicy, with almost soft acidity and a very creamy texture for this high-acidity vintage. The impressive tannin structure and stony minerality provide the structure at the long, firm finish. From organically grown grapes with Fair'n Green certification. Drink or hold.Winemaker Description Deep yellow in color, with golden hues. On the nose it evokes aromas of hazelnut, orange peel, and butter. Rich and round on the palate with well balanced acidity and a long finish. 

Winemaker Description

The Wiltinger Braune Kupp Spätlese 2021 is rich and intense, yet clear and subtle on the deep, spicy and spicy nose with aromas of rosewood and flower petals. Rich and intense yet refined and elegant on the palate, this is a mouth-filling, juicy, beautifully balanced and persistently salty Kupp Spätlese with a concentrated, very long and salty finish. Far too young to be enjoyed today, this is a long distance runner of great class and style. Start serving it with food in 5-10 years, but feel free to use it in 50+ years. Iconic wine.

The Wine Advocate (Parker) consistently writes in his review: "Buying the Wiltinger Braune Kupp is a must for all true Riesling fans"

Winemaker Description 

Light, crisp and refreshing. Honeyed peach, apples and honeydew melon notes. Off dry, with lots of stone fruit on the palate. Light in body and medium, crisp acidity.

Perfect with Asian food.

Winemaker Description 

Orange and tangelo, overripe peach and bergamot; juicy and firm, solid yet voluptuous, vaporous and long, plump yet muscular (how many ways can I say it?); a rococo opulent wine yet also seriously devout in its terroir, even as it blushes and giggles. SOS: 2 (8-27 years). 

Expert Review

The wines are deep, rich, powerful and dramatic...pinnacles in the history of dry German Riesling. -- Stephan Reinhardt, The Wine Advocate

Winemaker Description 

Light yellow-green in color. Nose of peach and lemon. Mouth-filling, taste of apricot and lemon, great acid level.

Winemaker Description 

Concentrated yellow berry fruit and apple skin backed by complex earthy aromas of spontaneous fermentation.  The palate has an excellent balance of delicate sweetness and juiciness, featuring clover honey and citrus. 

This makes you want to go back for another sip, and another, and another. 

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2021

99 Points Robert Parker | Aged on the full lees until June this year and to be bottled the day after I tasted it, the 2021 Hermannshöhle GG offers a clear, deep, intense and complex bouquet of iodine slate aromas intertwined with lemon oil notes and those of crushed stones. Darker toned and more remote or aristocratic yet also intense and concentrated, it has a sur lie character and concentrated fruit. Full-bodied, dense, yet crystalline and saline on the palate, this is a powerful, rich and persistent Hermannshöhle with a long, complex and aromatic finish with fine tannins and stimulating lemon bitters. Still with rougher grip, this is an intense and lush, still dismissive Hermannshöhle.

98 Points James Suckling | Power, complexity and brilliance make this a truly remarkable dry riesling, the touch of creaminess from long sur-lie maturation giving this exactly the soft touch it needs to balance the steely minerality that powers it at the imposing yet totally vibrant finish.

Winemaker Description 

A perfect, steep southern slope with soils consisting of blackish-grey slate and volcanic elements, extremely rich in minerals. The stuff of legends, for over 100 years this has been the most lauded site in the entire Nahe wine-growing region. 

Expert Review - Vintage 2022 

James Suckling 98 Points | Power, complexity and brilliance make this a truly remarkable dry riesling, the touch of creaminess from long sur-lie maturation giving this exactly the soft touch it needs to balance the steely minerality that powers it at the imposing yet totally vibrant finish. From organically grown grapes with Fair'n Green certification. Drink or hold.

Winemaker Description 

Sustainably farmed. Firmly dry, rich, layered, intense, and practically vibrating with minerality. A twenty-five year wine. 

Winemaker Description 

An elegant and feminine Riesling with fine fruit of ripe lemon, apricot and pineapple. Juicy and harmonious on the palate, with charming acidity and a fine floral finish. 

Expert Reviews | Vintage 2020 

96 Points James Suckling | This Spatlese beams you up to Cloud 9, from where you have a wonderful view over the beautiful Mosel Valley. In spite of the considerable concentration, this is super-delicate and precise on the barely medium-bodied palate. Enormously long finish, where you barely feel the natural grape sweetness. Drink or hold. 

95 Points Wine Advocate | The 2020 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spätlese is pure, clear and flinty on the concentrated nose that is reminiscent of a fresh fruit salad served on a slate plate on an early summer morning. Light, lush and highly finessed but seriously structured on the palate, this is a savory, very clear and elegant Sonnenuhr Spätlese with great precision and finesse and highly stimulating salinity and mouth-watering grip on the finish. Rating: 95+ 

Expert Reviews 

Expert Review - Vintage 2019

92 Points Vinous | Mango, pink grapefruit, pear, lychee, honeysuckle and lily combine for a headily exotic and almost overripe nose. Luscious, almost gaudy ripeness and perfume are the inner-mouth story as well, backed by gloss and considerable sweetness – though not the excessive sweetness that this bottling at one time tended to exhibit. The lingering finish displays real vibrancy, no doubt in large part owing to the wine’s harboring vintage-atypically high acidity of 10 grams. And that in turn is almost certainly a result of light desiccation of healthy fruit, which is also what gives this bottling its Auslese-like aura. (For the history of this bottling and its name, see especially my review of its vintage 2015 instantiation.).

Winemaker Description 

The Spreitzer Oestrich Lenchen Riesling Spätlese '303' was first produced in the year 2000 and honours the Spreitzer brothers Grandfather who harvested his legendary Trockenbeerenauslese from the same vineyard in 1920 - which garnered a record sugar level of 303 degrees Oechsle. 

Coming exclusively from the Eisenberg this is rich with red apples and sweet acacia honey on the nose. In reality this is more of a baby Auslese than a Spätlese, dripping with quince paste, peaches in sweet syrup and honeysuckle. A pure pleasure to drink, luscious without being over the top. Winemaker Description. 

Our Professional Review

Rand Sieger of 67Wine.com | The Scharzhofberg is considered by many to be the most prestigious vineyard in the Mosel region.  Sipping this beautiful Spatlese from Von Hovel reminded me why it has earned that vaunted reputation.

The nose is stately elegant while at the same time, quite powerful. Yellow fruit and bright white berries marry nicely with lemon zest, spice box, and just a touch of reductive sharpness.  A very definite honey sweetness stretches across the palate with just the right amount of lip-smacking tartness to tie it all together.  Finishes smooth and silky with a lingering trail of honey and brown sugar.

This is one to savor by itself as dessert in its own right, but would be a lovely accompaniment to simple shortbread biscuits, or raspberry tart.