German Wine

94 Points James Suckling | Wonderful honeysuckle and jasmine aromas pour from the glass of this very racy and crystalline Kabinett. As sharp and bright as a samurai sword, each swirl of the glass reveals new aromas, sushi ginger and dill only being the most obvious. Drink or hold.

Scharzhofberg is one of the most famous vineyard sites in Germany, likely to have originally been planted by the Romans. Situated in Wiltingen, removed from the Saar in a side valley and facing south, its slopes are quite steep, with a 30–60% grade, and high, at 180-280 meters elevation. Formed from grey Devonian slate, the soils are very deep with no bedrock. This wine is always delicate, crisp and exquisite on the palate. Winemaker Description. 

The famous traditional Karthäuserhof-wijnen are located in the famous Blotebuikfles. It's in the origin of the druiven. They come in the right avenue from the Karthäuserhofberg monopoly, also from the surrounding Wijngaarden in the Ruwer.

The quality of the iron is never less strict: the druiven is planned on steep slipways with strips on the ground and has been hand-geoed and selected. The opbrengst wordt is consciously stored for extra smaakconcentratie.
Proefnotity

Vol en aromatic from smaak. Tonen van rijp yellow fruit with a fraaie long afdronk. The wine is round and sappy, but it has a long, dry surface. 

94 Points James Suckling | A prototypical riesling Kabinett for the Ruwer tributary of the Mosel with the sleek, almost dry and racy personality we associate with this special terroir. The effusive aromas of yellow apple, white peach, rhubarb and garden herbs are married to a firm core of wet stone minerality on the light-bodied yet compact palate. (2021). 

The spicy spontaneous nose still dominates, but then the first fruity notes (juicy peach, grapefruit, white currant) and the slate literally pushes itself out of the glass. Very juicy and densely woven on the palate, a lot of melting, sweetness well integrated and countered by the invigorating acidity. A cabinet that will continue to reveal new facets over the next two decades. Winemaker Description.

Dessert wine made from particularly sweet and aromatic grapes. Notes of peach, citrus and honey. Winemaker Description. 

Two Princes displays fragrant notes of green apples, pears and passion fruit. A perfectly balanced acidity brings a lively crispness to this off-dry Riesling.

A perfect companion with fish, poultry, and pasta with cream sauce. Also pairs well with lightly spicy cuisine. Winemaker Description. 

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.

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.

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. 

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.

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. 

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.

95 Points James Suckling | This remarkable Saar Kabinett is very crystalline. Stacks of delicate white tree fruit and white flower aromas. Very straight and bright on the light-bodied palate which flashes like the blade of a sabre in the sun. Fantastic precision and subtly salty at the very long and pristine finish. Great aging potential. Drink or hold. (2022). 

93 Points Vinous | The 2022 Riesling Scharzhofberger Kabinett has a very open but tender nose: ripe greengage is bright and edged with a whisper of chervil. The sweetness on the palate kicks in first, but lightness takes over with serene lemon freshness and fine, almost earthy stone. Ripe greengage, delineated by lemon, soaks up that initial sugar and presents it as juicy, ripe fruit. Finesse runs through this, dancing on light Kabinett feet. The finish is merely off-dry. (Off-dry) Drink: 2023-2050. (Oct 2023)"

92 Points Mosel Fine Wines | The 2022er Scharzhofberger Riesling Kabinett is a barely fruity-styled wine. It is quite herbal and smoky at first and needs a few minutes in the glass to reveal fresh scents of white flowers, minty herbs, bergamot, vineyard peach, and lime zest. The wine is superbly playful and light-weighted on the finely creamy and delicately refined palate. The finish is very delicate and juicy. 2032-2047. 

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.

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).  Winemaker Description.

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

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

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. Winemaker Description. 

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.

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. Winemaker Description. 

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.

98 points, James Suckling (Nov 2022)

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. Winemaker Description. 

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+ 

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.)

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. 

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.

Rand Sieger, 67 Wine Buyer

Wine Advocate 95 Points |  From the overripe and botrytized berries of the Spätlese selection, the 2019 Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese is intense and concentrated on the nose, but due to the sulfuric notes, it is far from being as terroir-driven as the Spätlese or even the Kabinett. The fruit is concentrated yet piquant, fresh and elegant on the palate and pure, refined and subtle on the finish due to the crystalline acidity and finesse that represents the JSU. This is an excellent Spätlese that needs at least a decade to age to its full finesse.

James Suckling 96 Points | Plenty of exotic-fruit character from botrytis, but they haven’t made this refined Auslese loud, only more complex and tantalizing. Considerable concentration, but everything fits together so neatly that it comes off as restrained. Very complex, almost dry finish with a hint of vanilla pod. Delicious now, but so much aging potential.

The 2019er Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Auslese was made from partially botrytized fruit (1/3) picked at 115° Oechsle, and was fermented down to noble-sweet levels of residual sugar (125 g/l). It offers a gorgeous nose made of elderflower, cassis, white peach, coconut, almond paste, fresh pineapple, and loads of citrusy and minty elements. The wine proves stunningly tactile and subtle on the palate, where delicately creamy fruits mingle with ripe yet gorgeously juicy acidity. The finish is all about bright exotic fruits, citrusy elements, and fine notes of cream. This gorgeous sweet wine may seem almost irresistible now, but it will gain from a decade of aging as the sweetness will have receded and given way to more nuances. Winemaker Description.

Rand Sieger 67Wine.com | This is about as good as a mosel riesling under $20 can be. Rarely do you find a Spätlese of this quality for such a low price. Classic mosel with bright white currant fruit, clover honey, and an energetic undercurrent of lime zest and slatey minerality. It really explodes on the palate with juicy, mouth watering fruit and the perfect balance of sweetness and acidity.

Try this paired with breaded, deep-fried button mushrooms dipped in tartar sauce. The combination will make you smile.

The Rauen family in the Mosel has been growing grapes for many generations but began bottling their own wine only in 1983. When Harald Rauen took the reins from his father more than 30 years ago, the first thing he did with their vineyards in the slate-rich soils of Detzem and Thornich was to reduce the yields in the vineyards to concentrate on quality instead of bulk. The result has been a line of classically clean and elegant Rieslings. His Spatlese is light-bodied and zesty, just a touch sweet, with notes of apricot, lime, and flint.