Seattle Tasting Group does 'Teutonic' Whites

I hosted a meeting of the Seattle Tasting Group at my house for a blind tasting of Alsacian and German whites. This was a followup to a very popular tasting we did two years earlier.

As people arrived I was pouring this crisp, clean 2005 QbA as a quaffer.

• 2005 Weingut Robert Weil Riesling 88 Points

  Germany, Rheingau

  Talc, slate, a gorgeous and bracing summer drink.

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Our first flight was a pair of gorgeous Weinbach wines. The contrast between 2002 and 2003 was fascinating.

• 2002 Domaine Weinbach Riesling Cuvée Ste. Catherine 93 Points

  France, Alsace

  A hint of botrytis, apricot, a ripe nose. Some paraffin. Mmm, the palate leads with a huge wave of acid, rather aggressive at first, loads of kerosene, lime, wet stone, not fully integrated at first. Wow, this has a HUGE finish, and with air this quickly fills out and comes together. Wowza, that finish is just spectacular, lingering. Well done!

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• 2003 Domaine Weinbach Riesling Cuvée Ste. Catherine 89 Points

  France, Alsace

  More stone and less fruit than the 2002. Some tangerine peeking out. Lime, citrus degreaser. Much less acid than the 2002 but more body/weight. At first I wondered if this was slightly corked, as it seemed stripped, but ultimately it just seems a little hollow and formless. The 2002 is a significantly better wine.

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Our next flight featured a super pair of young Spätlese and a pretty dreadful ringer.

• 2002 Dönnhoff Oberhäuser Brücke Riesling Spätlese 95 Points

  Germany, Nahe

  AP# 08. Tangerine, mineral, dusty and reticent aromatics at first. OMFG, what a palate, just unreal tangerine, long, poignant, stacked and packed. This is insanely young stuff but the real deal.

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• 2001 Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Spätlese 91 Points

  Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

  AP# 07. Stinky mineral on the nose, in a good way. Tingly and spiny with really nice edginess, almost margarita salty, limeade. This gets a bit fatter with time but must be closed, as it is showing awfully lean for a Spätlese.

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• 2004 Moore Cellars Riesling Champoux Vineyard 75 Points

  USA, Washington, Columbia Valley, Horse Heaven Hills

  Powdered sugar, a little slate. Bitter, very alcholic, not very rewarding. Clearly a ringer, I thought this was from NY.

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In our last flight before dinner we had some of the more mature wines.

• 1990 Karthäuserhof Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Auslese 94 Points

  Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

  AP# 13. Petrol, more petrol and some white flowers. Simply gorgeous. Gorgeous weight, definition, oiliness, and honey yet with remarkable acidity. Vibrant, lightly bitter on the finish with lots of minerality, very nice, an awesome wine!

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• 1989 Bert Simon Serriger Würtzberg Riesling Auslese * Flawed

  Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

  AP# 32. Deep color. Some honey and mint on the nose, followed by varnish. A bit burned. This is a DNPIM (do not put in mouth!) wine. Cooked, flawed, toast.

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• 1997 Joh. Jos. Prüm Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Auslese 87 Points

  Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

  AP# 03. Mosel stink; very, very schtinky! Lots of sulphur, green apple, very wound up. On the palate this is not a lot of fun right now, but I suspect it will turn into a beauty in time. Feels more like a Spatlese than an Auslese.

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Dinner was halibut in black bean sauce with dry sauteed string beans. Yummy on its own and utterly orgasmic with the remarkable Zind-Humbrecht Pinot Gris.

• 1994 Zind-Humbrecht Pinot Gris Clos Windsbuhl Vendange Tardive 97 Points

  France, Alsace

  Honey, seaweed, quince, and a hint of allspice. This is amazingly rich with kerosene, apricot and honey, oily and intense at the same time. Wowza, this was unreal with dinner and even better on its own. 97+ and the WOTN.

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After dinner we had a pair of very old wines, one OK and one totally shot.

• 1971 Weingut Prinz von Hessen Johannisberger Klaus Riesling Beerenauslese 85 Points

  Germany, Rheingau

  AP# 21. Mint and a hint of tobacco leaf. Caramel, searing acidity, nice but not a ton of life left on this.

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• 1976 Graf von Francken-Sierstorpff Rüdesheimer Berg Roseneck Riesling Beerenauslese Flawed

  Germany, Rheingau

  Shot, cloudy, totally DOA.

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Finally we finished up with a pair of babies.

• 2002 Weingut Spreitzer Mittelheimer St. Nikolaus Riesling Eiswein

  Germany, Rheingau

  Remarkable acidity. Nothing else in my notebook for this one, but I remember being somewhat in awe of this.

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• 2003 Karthäuserhof Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Riesling Auslese Nr. 43

  Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

  Talc, green apple, slate. Mouthwatering. This showed much more acid than I expected. An intense baby of a wine.

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