Community Tasting Note

RajivAyyangar wrote:

Wednesday, July 1, 2015 - 2001: A Wine Odyssey — Berserker Offline @ The Palace (The Palace Steakhouse, SF): Summary:
From the famously steep “Sundial” vineyard, this wine is a classic Mosel Riesling (soil is blue and devon slate).

This wine is so young, so primary, and so classic! I was surprised by the strength of the burnt match, but it seems (according to the interwebs) this is perfectly normal for young Prum Riesling - especially from the Sonnenuhr vineyard. Moderately sweet, light, and saffron-scented, with good varietal character and sparkling acidity.

Score: Between 8.5 and 9.

Visual:
Clear, day bright, medium-straw with moderate concentration. I’m a bit surprised this was lighter in color than the Cuvee Freddy - especially since this has botrytis on it, and that usually hastens oxidation and thus deepening of color.

Nose:
Light burnt match (reduction), which yields to a light (but present) tone of petrol/pool-toy (TDN). There is a slight hint of grapefruit pith (thiol character), and a moderate influence of botrytis (warm saffron and rice tones). Fruit wasn’t dominant for me.

Surprisingly youthful and moderately complex, with both varietal character and botrytis influence. The burnt match certainly evokes a sense of warm crushed stones (Terroir!). The fact that it seems to be a reductive character doesn’t change the magic of this combination. I’m becoming more and more convinced of the argument that minerality is in fact the combination of high acidy and moderated reduction.

I think this probably needs a lot of time — decades, perhaps — for the struck match aromas to subside and for secondary and tertiary aromas to develop.

Palate:
Off-dry (I wrote ~15g/L, but given the ripping high acid it could be in the 30’s or 40’s).
Low alcohol (not even diminished - I feel almost no alcoholic heat). ~10%? [actually 7.5%].
Solidly high acid, both malic and tartaric, though initially the acidic spark is softened by significant sweetness.
No phenolic bitterness.
Superb balance with sweetness lifted by strong acid.
Complexity is just moderate at this point - I think it needs significant age to develop further.
The finish is long, with sweetness and acidity neck-and-neck.

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