German Riesling from 1971 to 2012

Los Gatos, California
Tasted Sunday, August 14, 2022 by drwine2001 with 202 views

Introduction

I was fortunate enough to receive an invitation to join an established tasting group for this remarkable survey of four plus decades of Riesling ranging from the driest of the dry to the sweetest of the sweet. Most of the bottles wee provided by one collector who has bought these wines over the years on both the primary and secondary markets, so provenance varied. Each of the last 3 flights was served and tasted blind, although everyone had received the roster of wines beforehand. Within each flight, for ease of reading, I have noted the wines from youngest to oldest even though they were not served in that order.

Flight 1 - To Whet the Palate (2 Notes)

Flight 2 - Dry Wines (4 Notes)

Flight 3 - Spätlese (4 Notes)

Flight 4 - Older Late Harvested Wines (5 Notes)

  • 1990 Schloss Schönborn Hattenheimer Pfaffenberg Riesling Auslese

    Germany, Rheingau

    Deep yellow, golden hue. High toned, slightly off scents but not corked. Medium weight and sweetness, high acidity. Ripe apple fruit but one dimensional with an unclean, bitter finish.

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  • 1983 Fritz Haag Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese Lange Goldkapsel #20

    Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

    Yellow, remarkably light for its age. Fresh and pure aromas. Perfect Mosel weight and a degree of sweetness that is exceeded by current day Spatlesen. Swirling mix of apple, peach, and slate. A marvel of balance and subtlety with stunning youthfulness for an almost 40 year old wine. Despite being in a flight with much sweeter, more powerful wines, just about everyone at this tasting recognized the greatness of this classic wine.

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  • 1976 Dr. Heinz Wagner Saarburger Antoniusbrunnen Riesling Beerenauslese

    Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

    Gold with browning. Baked tropical fruit nose with something dirty sticking out. Viscous but not huge, and the sweetness is not over the top. Simple palate of caramelized sugar and good acidity. Hard to get a handle on the fruit, just not as clear as in the other sweet wines here. The impure note comes back on the finish. I really didn't care for this.

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  • 1976 Franz Karl Schmitt Niersteiner Orbel Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese

    Germany, Rheinhessen

    Deep golden color. Wow, sultanas and figs jump right out of the glass. Unctuous and round but not syrupy or oppressively heavy. Pure sweet fig fruit leavened by great acidity, which is particularly astounding given the vintage. Just amazingly lively with great cling and length. Superb TBA that was impossible to spit.

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  • 1971 Dr. Heinz Wagner Saarburger Antoniusbrunnen Riesling Auslese Eiswein

    Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer

    Amber brown color. Some dank mustiness quickly blew off to reveal herbs and high tones. More than one taster commented that the combination of how this looked and smelled immediately called Madeira to mind. Cleaner in the mouth than on the nose. Crême brulée, coffee, apricot, rapier-like acidity, and a soil finish. This lightened and became more expansive over the time it sat in the glass. Maybe past its absolute prime, but still pretty amazing stuff at more than 50 years of age.

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