PNP. Cork a little crumbly but intact. Color is gold. Nose promises mature Riesling which the palate delivers. Served just below cellar temp which allows acidity to balance what little RS persists. This was fantastic and still will hold. Amazing how great Riesling will hang for 25+
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(Mostly) Spätlese dinner at Proxi (Chicago, IL): #19-99, 10% abv. The Müller-Catoir wines tonight were all unmistakably Müller-Catoir. This was a heavy, hard-hitting Spätlese with a generous mix of herbal tones and a very full-throttle dose of ripe, tropical fruit. There are some more exotic, almost scheurebe-like tropical tones on the palate, and the sweetness is balanced incredibly well with the slightly oily texture. A fascinating wine, but very much overshadowed by the 2001 version.
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Sailing along a mature plateau with no end in sight. Still showing some of the tropical fruit of its youth, but also a more mature orange/nectarine and brown sugar glaze that adds a layer of lusciousness to the experience. A hint of black tea betrays the age on the wine, but also adds to the overall complexity. Time has brought the sweetness down to the Feinherb level, and it’s balanced by the still vibrant acidity. At the finish there’s a hit of creaminess, like a spiced creamsicle, and the flavors echo down an endless tunnel. It’s going to be a shame when this is all gone.
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Incredibly young and filled with life. Feels like it's just emerging out of its long slumber to pounce. Grapefruit pith, peach, papaya, white flowers. Full body without feeling heavy. It's got a hell of a pep in its step. Slightly salty finish that lingers and leaves you wanting more. The bottle didn't last long.
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Perfection. I've had some amazing bottles of this in the past, but this one was on another level. The tropical fruit felt fresher and more youthful than in previous bottles, with an almost Scheurebe-like exuberance and intensity. There's amazing acidity here that cuts through the richness and makes it feel remarkably light and elegant for such a rich, thick wine, and the overall experience is hard to put into words. Can't imagine Riesling being any better.
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Nose of peach, dried apricot, spice and horseradish. Mature and drying out. Sweet-dry on palate with more dried apricot and peach, orange peel - solid acid backbone, horseradsh, botrytis - nice perfume. Drink up. Nose - 5/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 5.5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1.5/2 = 17/20.
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Golden in color with luscious tropical fruit, though unfortunately losing some of its edge and crispness relative to how it showed a few years ago - turning into a wine you'd probably rather have with the cheese than with the apps.
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I think I’m finally starting to really understand the Pfalz. The wines have a much more burnished fruit character, certainly more exotic than Mosel which has a more mineral/salt water characteristic to its fruit flavors. What this perhaps lacks in transparency, more than makes up for with just sheer fleshy intensity. The color on this was deep golden, the flavors were like mango and pineapple with a touch of sugar brûléed on top. But there is a cooling minty touch, a little hyssop perhaps? I think this is in a perfect spot right now. Splendid.
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Wow, it’s been years since I last opened a bottle of this wine. There are still a few left in the cellar from what was once a huge stash of 20+ bottles, bought when Catoir Spatlese could be had for $21.99.
It’s definitely mature, gliding along a delicious plateau, where the tropical fruit (mango, pineapple, papaya - almost Scheurebe-esque) has been lightly grilled, and dusted with baking spices. The acidity is bracing, and makes my mouth water, prompting another sip.
I would advise drinking this wine if you have it. It’s not in any danger of heading over the hill any time soon, but why not catch that tropical fruit while it’s still the main focus.
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Monumental Riesling. This is at peak. Deep gold in colour, and what an unreal fragrance. Layers of ripe citrus, tropical fruit, smoke, fresh herbs, and an intense earthy/rocky mineral character all coming together into a package that's incredibly complex, powerful, and impeccably balanced. There's plenty of sweetness here, but also a ton of acidity and a finish that goes on and on.
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Dinner with Keith at Table, Donkey and Stick (Chicago, IL): The work of a consummate master. This is brilliant riesling. There is no question about it. Made in a very heavy and thick style, with barely enough residual sugar to prevent this from toppling into an ungainly mess, this shows a huge pile of sweet yellow fruit and a crisp vein of acidity that pierces through all the fat. It has always amazed me how these old Müller-Catoirs get so big and yet keep their balance. This bottle is no exception.
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A masterful bottle. Sad to have opened it so young, though I do have to say, it was probably in my favorite stage for German Riesling. Perfect balance between sweetness, acidity and mineralogy. 98's are turning out to be really beautiful wines.
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This wine always was off-dry (10.0% stated alcohol). There is still pronounced acidity that gives the wine firmness and liveliness. The nose and mouth show citric elements with hints of peaches, nectarines, and tropical fruit. It's a wine of more interest from an intellectual standpoint than from a sensual one, and indeed probably not a particularly easy food match as it is a bit stern on the finish.
Cellared since release, APN 1999.
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Once again the thing that strikes me about this is how it is actually brighter and fresher than my last bottle of the '01, which is itself still pretty crisp relative to many other '01 spatleses. At the same time this is very rich and mouth-filling, with luscious yellow tropical fruit that gets an extra kick of freshness on the back end, when it seems palpably chalky.
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Very pronounced nose of pineapple and tropical fruit; lithe body. Amazing electric acidity and quite yummy on open. Fairly quickly, though, this faded into something much less interesting and complex. Perhaps it is time to drink up?
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My last bottle, and thankfully there are no cork issues here. A powerhouse of ripe citrus and tropical fruit seasoned by mature smoky and burnished notes. It's fully mature, bright gold in colour but it's still incredibly fresh and vibrant with tremendous acidity beneath the fruit and superb length.
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beautiful yellow color; very nice old nose; flavor mostly sweet but complex and perfectly integrated; long finish - no need to hold this one any longer, can't get much better than this (went okay with spicy stir-fry but I recommend enjoying this one by itself)
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A very fresh and youthful showing. The color is not as deep yellow/gold as others have been recently and there's a little spritz on the tip of the tongue when first poured. Just loaded with peaches, nectarines, citrus and minerals. There's nice sweetness, but, more importantly, the acidity is zippy and as invigorating as a plunge into a glacier-fed mountain stream. Long finish filled with lip smacking lime flavors. Just an electric wine clicking on all cylinders. A/A-.
Saturday Night at the Claffee's (The Claffee's): Very fond of this wine. Has nice lychee fruit and fresh linen on the nose with subtle lime, apple and crushed rocks. The body is round in a sense, with fleshy fruit tones, but the finish has piercing acidity that compliments the fruit nicely.
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Popped and poured. Cork perfect. Color dark straw / light gold. Intense Riesling nose. On palate this seemed to have quite a bit of residual sugar at first but i think partly because we were following a bone dry zind humbrecht riesling. as the bottle warmed and the evening wore on the acids became more prominent but always in balance. There is quite a lot here and this should last for some time. Drank with spicy Chinese so difficult to dissect further but really enjoyed.
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This bottle showed some clear signs of having leaked at some stage, probably from typical German over-fill. It didn't see to have hurt the wine, which showed a bit of color, but retained good freshness, with hints of age (though not a lot of petrol). The sweetness has moderated, revealing a lovely foundation of complex fruit, hints of roasted nuts and dried herbs, drinking beautifully, but could easily age another decade. Lacked a bit of acidity to give it more punch and overall balance, but that's my only complaint. Very nice, and held up well over several hours after opening.
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TN: A few wines at Paul's baconpalooza (Paul's): Deep gold in color and showing more advanced than normal, or as it should. While still tasty, and offering up grilled peach and tropical fruit flavors and aromas, this has clearly seen some heat along the way.
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Different than the previous bottle. This had really nice nose of lanolin and florals, but the palate was a bit vacant. I had noted that it seemed advanced 5 months ago and maybe it's progressing down that path quickly?
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Very advanced color of dark gold. Nose of hay, almonds, honeyed pears, and crushed rocks. Palate was very fresh (despite the amber color) with electric acidity, honeyed fruits, white flowers and lots of minerals. Hard to tell how this will do over the next few years, but it feels like a surprisingly mature riesling.
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Consistent with previous notes. A spectrum of fruit ranging from fresh grapefruit to sweeter peachy and faintly tropical flavours accented by more savoury earthy, smoky and minerally flavours. There's tremendous power, depth and balance; drinking beautifully right now and I'm glad I have more.
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Slightly oxidative and really advanced in its appearance and flavours, no thanks to a really shitty cork that was crumbling to bits the moment it saw a corkscrew. Ugh.
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Mostly tasty wines with Christine's shabu shabu. (Christine's): Jay knows I’ve always liked this wine and it’s always nice to check in on his apparently endless supply. I’m a little surprised by the deep gold color. This bottle certainly shows some more advanced characteristics on the nose. There’s a lot more petrol showing than a bottle I had just two years ago, there’s more of a desiccated apricot character and some intriguing brown spice aromas. Ahhh, but on the palate, the wine is just groovy. It’s intense, yet harmonious with lip smacking acidity nicely balancing the sweet dried apricot and pineapple fruit. There’s some nice secondary development and a certain creaminess to the wine that’s just delightful. Drinking well now, though no hurry here. In fact, I know a bunch of folks that would still consider this too young. A/A-.
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Lemon yellow in the glass and still very sweet and thick. This is almost like drinking some sort of lemon custard concoction! Nose seems to be advancing with a slight hint of Durian mixing in with other tropical notes and some minerality. Great balance if a little rich and it seems as though this could keep going on as long as the cork holds.
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Says a lot about how well Muller-Catoir did in '98 that this actually tastes more youthful and fresher than the '01 did this week. Not quite as dynamic or powerful but still damn delicious.
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Golden color. Full, beautiful nose leads with petrol with sweet white fruit, caramelized sugar and minerals in the background. Palate presents round, rich fruit with good acidic edge and moderate sweetness. Pure, delicious with an ethereal presence. This shows a mature balance -- without the intense acid or forward fruit of young Spats. Killer with Spoon Thai.
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Incredible wine, combining a kaleidoscope of bright fruit that ranges from citrus to the tropical with developed smoky and petrol accents and touches of spices and minerals, and a mouthfeel that somehow manages to feel creamy and rich while still keeping a sense of amazing freshness, energy and balance.
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A fascinating comparison with the '98 Spätlese halbtrocken from the same site; riper, sweeter and more tropical in its flavour profile with a developed creamy element showing amidst the bright white fruits and really good acidity again keeping it very precise and light on its feet. Fantastic wine as well, although I preferred the halbtrocken by a hair - but a real treat to enjoy both over the same evening.
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What a wine! Everything here that you can expect in a great bottle of Riesling, from bright primary citrus and tropical fruit flavours, intense minerality, smoke and spice with touches of honey, brilliant acidity and incredible precision and length. Absolutely stunning wine, and a real pleasure to sit down with this over dinner.
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This was a very nice bottle. Medium (+) golden color, nose of citrus and a touch of tropical, white flowers, and petrol. Good acidity and sweetness. Very enjoyable at dinner with friends.
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Dinner at Schwa (Schwa): Nice riesling but showing more maturity than I would have guessed. Slightly caramel yellow color with a hint of caramel carrying through to the palate. Not sure if this was just a mature bottle, but if not, drink up.
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As well as this showed in February, this bottle was even better. Just beautiful, medium-full, still sweet, but the sugar doesn't stick out at all. The secondary development has really kicked in.
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I agree, this has turned the corner in a big way. It still has room for positive development, but it is very, very good right now. The color is bright gold, and the petrol note is in the background. What you get is tropical fruits and spice kept fresh with balancing, fully integrated acidity. If anything, it tastes fresher now than a few years ago.
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Now showing much more development than a year ago. This still has lots of grapefruit and peach aromas and flavors, but is now joined by a full set of earthy, stony & smoky secondary elements. This is reaching its plateau of maturity where I expect it will stay for several years.
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Brunello Bash with Carlo (the Manor): baby - needs time. Althoug closed and only starting to give after a few hours in the decanter, this is a true Pfalz riesling, the green apples AND papaya, honey and pineapples. delicious - but give it a bit more time. YUM!
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It's been over a year since I last visited this wine. Development is ongoing, but likely not finished. There's still a tropical element to the nose, and that grapefruit note that is signature Catoir (at least old school Catoir). Crisp, lean and still full of fruit, this has turned into something much less sweet but much more food freindly that it was on release (when it was a bit of a monster). The fruity finish is persistent, but well balanced by firm acids. There's very little secondary nuance on the palate, but still lots of material, so look for further development here. From a cold cellar this has a good 10-15 years of life left in it, perhaps more. This doesn't sound like a particularly laudatory note, but what this wine has is supreme balance. At age 9 it's just coming into its own. Age 12-15 will see this approaching maturity, with the full breed of the wine coming out. Classic, old-school (read Hans-Gunter Schwarz) Catoir.
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Great Riesling! This wine is still a baby, but it still has lots to show: tropical fruit, creamy mouthfeel & solid Auslese weight (in a Spatlese!). Not too sweet for food, but also with sufficient sugar, fruit and acid to age for a long, long time. This is the real deal & perhaps the best Spatlese ever from Catoir.
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While good now, I think this is still closed. I got a pretty heavy dose of petrol on the nose, and it really hasn't begun to unfold. The color has evolved since last I had this a couple of years ago; it's maybe a medium, light gold. And the finish is quite powerful. I'm going to try to keep hands off for at least a couple more years.
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Bright yellow with a tremendous nose of tropical fruits. Medium to full body. Very well balance with hints of pears, peaches and lychee. Drinking very well right now with a medium finish and will last for another decade. A bit too sweet for me though.
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AP #19-99. Light yellow in color, this youthful wine had an exuberant nose from the start. Loaded with peaches, pears, tropical fruits and light petrol, this is a ripe, concentrated, unctuous wine that has excellent balance. Full bodied and a medium length finish, this wine will continue to age well if I can keep from drinking the remaining bottles in the short term. 50+12+12+8+8 = 90.
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4/23/2023 - chcook Likes this wine:
PNP. Cork a little crumbly but intact. Color is gold. Nose promises mature Riesling which the palate delivers. Served just below cellar temp which allows acidity to balance what little RS persists. This was fantastic and still will hold. Amazing how great Riesling will hang for 25+
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12/1/2021 - acyso wrote: 93 Points
(Mostly) Spätlese dinner at Proxi (Chicago, IL): #19-99, 10% abv. The Müller-Catoir wines tonight were all unmistakably Müller-Catoir. This was a heavy, hard-hitting Spätlese with a generous mix of herbal tones and a very full-throttle dose of ripe, tropical fruit. There are some more exotic, almost scheurebe-like tropical tones on the palate, and the sweetness is balanced incredibly well with the slightly oily texture. A fascinating wine, but very much overshadowed by the 2001 version.
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8/18/2021 - Rieslingfan wrote:
Sailing along a mature plateau with no end in sight. Still showing some of the tropical fruit of its youth, but also a more mature orange/nectarine and brown sugar glaze that adds a layer of lusciousness to the experience. A hint of black tea betrays the age on the wine, but also adds to the overall complexity. Time has brought the sweetness down to the Feinherb level, and it’s balanced by the still vibrant acidity. At the finish there’s a hit of creaminess, like a spiced creamsicle, and the flavors echo down an endless tunnel. It’s going to be a shame when this is all gone.
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7/10/2021 - rcb25 Likes this wine:
Incredibly young and filled with life. Feels like it's just emerging out of its long slumber to pounce. Grapefruit pith, peach, papaya, white flowers. Full body without feeling heavy. It's got a hell of a pep in its step. Slightly salty finish that lingers and leaves you wanting more. The bottle didn't last long.
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7/1/2021 - acyso wrote: flawed
#19-99, 10% abv. 9827. Advanced and/or slightly heat-damaged. A shame, as the fantastic material is still plenty evident.
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2/28/2020 - salil wrote: 100 Points
Perfection. I've had some amazing bottles of this in the past, but this one was on another level. The tropical fruit felt fresher and more youthful than in previous bottles, with an almost Scheurebe-like exuberance and intensity. There's amazing acidity here that cuts through the richness and makes it feel remarkably light and elegant for such a rich, thick wine, and the overall experience is hard to put into words. Can't imagine Riesling being any better.
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1/8/2020 - Seth Rosenberg Likes this wine: 94 Points
Nose of peach, dried apricot, spice and horseradish. Mature and drying out. Sweet-dry on palate with more dried apricot and peach, orange peel - solid acid backbone, horseradsh, botrytis - nice perfume. Drink up. Nose - 5/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 5.5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1.5/2 = 17/20.
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5/31/2019 - Keith Levenberg wrote: 89 Points
Golden in color with luscious tropical fruit, though unfortunately losing some of its edge and crispness relative to how it showed a few years ago - turning into a wine you'd probably rather have with the cheese than with the apps.
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2/9/2019 - winequant Likes this wine: 93 Points
I think I’m finally starting to really understand the Pfalz. The wines have a much more burnished fruit character, certainly more exotic than Mosel which has a more mineral/salt water characteristic to its fruit flavors. What this perhaps lacks in transparency, more than makes up for with just sheer fleshy intensity. The color on this was deep golden, the flavors were like mango and pineapple with a touch of sugar brûléed on top. But there is a cooling minty touch, a little hyssop perhaps? I think this is in a perfect spot right now. Splendid.
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12/25/2018 - cfk49 wrote: 91 Points
Still holding, good acidity and freshness, beginning to lose some fruit. Time to drink.
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12/15/2018 - Rieslingfan wrote:
Wow, it’s been years since I last opened a bottle of this wine. There are still a few left in the cellar from what was once a huge stash of 20+ bottles, bought when Catoir Spatlese could be had for $21.99.
It’s definitely mature, gliding along a delicious plateau, where the tropical fruit (mango, pineapple, papaya - almost Scheurebe-esque) has been lightly grilled, and dusted with baking spices. The acidity is bracing, and makes my mouth water, prompting another sip.
I would advise drinking this wine if you have it. It’s not in any danger of heading over the hill any time soon, but why not catch that tropical fruit while it’s still the main focus.
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11/14/2018 - salil wrote: 95 Points
Monumental Riesling. This is at peak. Deep gold in colour, and what an unreal fragrance. Layers of ripe citrus, tropical fruit, smoke, fresh herbs, and an intense earthy/rocky mineral character all coming together into a package that's incredibly complex, powerful, and impeccably balanced. There's plenty of sweetness here, but also a ton of acidity and a finish that goes on and on.
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9/14/2016 - acyso wrote: 95 Points
Dinner with Keith at Table, Donkey and Stick (Chicago, IL): The work of a consummate master. This is brilliant riesling. There is no question about it. Made in a very heavy and thick style, with barely enough residual sugar to prevent this from toppling into an ungainly mess, this shows a huge pile of sweet yellow fruit and a crisp vein of acidity that pierces through all the fat. It has always amazed me how these old Müller-Catoirs get so big and yet keep their balance. This bottle is no exception.
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8/29/2016 - winequant Likes this wine: 94 Points
A masterful bottle. Sad to have opened it so young, though I do have to say, it was probably in my favorite stage for German Riesling. Perfect balance between sweetness, acidity and mineralogy. 98's are turning out to be really beautiful wines.
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7/5/2016 - cfk49 wrote: 91 Points
This wine always was off-dry (10.0% stated alcohol). There is still pronounced acidity that gives the wine firmness and liveliness. The nose and mouth show citric elements with hints of peaches, nectarines, and tropical fruit. It's a wine of more interest from an intellectual standpoint than from a sensual one, and indeed probably not a particularly easy food match as it is a bit stern on the finish.
Cellared since release, APN 1999.
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6/23/2014 - Keith Levenberg wrote: 92 Points
Once again the thing that strikes me about this is how it is actually brighter and fresher than my last bottle of the '01, which is itself still pretty crisp relative to many other '01 spatleses. At the same time this is very rich and mouth-filling, with luscious yellow tropical fruit that gets an extra kick of freshness on the back end, when it seems palpably chalky.
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3/19/2014 - 14frimaire wrote:
Absolutely singing. What a glorious showing. After a couple of tired bottles, this last one from the case had a perfect cork.
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8/21/2013 - 14frimaire wrote:
Deep golden and delicious. A great example.
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8/13/2013 - indiscriminate palate wrote: 93 Points
Very pronounced nose of pineapple and tropical fruit; lithe body. Amazing electric acidity and quite yummy on open. Fairly quickly, though, this faded into something much less interesting and complex. Perhaps it is time to drink up?
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8/13/2013 - salil wrote: 94 Points
My last bottle, and thankfully there are no cork issues here. A powerhouse of ripe citrus and tropical fruit seasoned by mature smoky and burnished notes. It's fully mature, bright gold in colour but it's still incredibly fresh and vibrant with tremendous acidity beneath the fruit and superb length.
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12/29/2012 - Carniolan Likes this wine: 91 Points
beautiful yellow color; very nice old nose; flavor mostly sweet but complex and perfectly integrated; long finish - no need to hold this one any longer, can't get much better than this (went okay with spicy stir-fry but I recommend enjoying this one by itself)
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9/16/2012 - 14frimaire wrote:
This bottle was singing. The cork did an especially good job, and the bottle was vibrant, as good as any from this case. All hail Hans-Gunther.
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9/15/2012 - BradKNYC wrote:
A very fresh and youthful showing. The color is not as deep yellow/gold as others have been recently and there's a little spritz on the tip of the tongue when first poured. Just loaded with peaches, nectarines, citrus and minerals. There's nice sweetness, but, more importantly, the acidity is zippy and as invigorating as a plunge into a glacier-fed mountain stream. Long finish filled with lip smacking lime flavors. Just an electric wine clicking on all cylinders. A/A-.
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6/1/2012 - salil wrote: flawed
Corked. FFS. Why does every second bottle of this seem to have a horrible cork?
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3/18/2012 - salil wrote: flawed
Another oxidized bottle. Damn.
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3/17/2012 - indiscriminate palate wrote: flawed
Old Haut and Young Yquem (Vernon): oxidized
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11/26/2011 - tooch wrote:
Saturday Night at the Claffee's (The Claffee's): Very fond of this wine. Has nice lychee fruit and fresh linen on the nose with subtle lime, apple and crushed rocks. The body is round in a sense, with fleshy fruit tones, but the finish has piercing acidity that compliments the fruit nicely.
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10/23/2011 - chcook wrote: 92 Points
Popped and poured. Cork perfect. Color dark straw / light gold. Intense Riesling nose. On palate this seemed to have quite a bit of residual sugar at first but i think partly because we were following a bone dry zind humbrecht riesling. as the bottle warmed and the evening wore on the acids became more prominent but always in balance. There is quite a lot here and this should last for some time. Drank with spicy Chinese so difficult to dissect further but really enjoyed.
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9/5/2011 - alanr Likes this wine: 92 Points
This bottle showed some clear signs of having leaked at some stage, probably from typical German over-fill. It didn't see to have hurt the wine, which showed a bit of color, but retained good freshness, with hints of age (though not a lot of petrol). The sweetness has moderated, revealing a lovely foundation of complex fruit, hints of roasted nuts and dried herbs, drinking beautifully, but could easily age another decade. Lacked a bit of acidity to give it more punch and overall balance, but that's my only complaint. Very nice, and held up well over several hours after opening.
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8/20/2011 - BradKNYC wrote: flawed
TN: A few wines at Paul's baconpalooza (Paul's): Deep gold in color and showing more advanced than normal, or as it should. While still tasty, and offering up grilled peach and tropical fruit flavors and aromas, this has clearly seen some heat along the way.
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8/9/2011 - tooch wrote: 87 Points
Different than the previous bottle. This had really nice nose of lanolin and florals, but the palate was a bit vacant. I had noted that it seemed advanced 5 months ago and maybe it's progressing down that path quickly?
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8/9/2011 - 14frimaire wrote:
Still int he sweet spot.
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3/4/2011 - tooch wrote: 90 Points
Very advanced color of dark gold. Nose of hay, almonds, honeyed pears, and crushed rocks. Palate was very fresh (despite the amber color) with electric acidity, honeyed fruits, white flowers and lots of minerals. Hard to tell how this will do over the next few years, but it feels like a surprisingly mature riesling.
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2/4/2011 - salil wrote: 92 Points
Consistent with previous notes. A spectrum of fruit ranging from fresh grapefruit to sweeter peachy and faintly tropical flavours accented by more savoury earthy, smoky and minerally flavours. There's tremendous power, depth and balance; drinking beautifully right now and I'm glad I have more.
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1/5/2011 - salil wrote: flawed
Slightly oxidative and really advanced in its appearance and flavours, no thanks to a really shitty cork that was crumbling to bits the moment it saw a corkscrew. Ugh.
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12/22/2010 - BradKNYC wrote:
Mostly tasty wines with Christine's shabu shabu. (Christine's): Jay knows I’ve always liked this wine and it’s always nice to check in on his apparently endless supply. I’m a little surprised by the deep gold color. This bottle certainly shows some more advanced characteristics on the nose. There’s a lot more petrol showing than a bottle I had just two years ago, there’s more of a desiccated apricot character and some intriguing brown spice aromas. Ahhh, but on the palate, the wine is just groovy. It’s intense, yet harmonious with lip smacking acidity nicely balancing the sweet dried apricot and pineapple fruit. There’s some nice secondary development and a certain creaminess to the wine that’s just delightful. Drinking well now, though no hurry here. In fact, I know a bunch of folks that would still consider this too young. A/A-.
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11/20/2010 - 14frimaire wrote:
Lovely, but the absence of an ice bucket was a bummer. Served a little warm, it felt hollow. Don't know if it was the bottle or the serving temp.
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9/17/2010 - locovino wrote: 91 Points
Lemon yellow in the glass and still very sweet and thick. This is almost like drinking some sort of lemon custard concoction! Nose seems to be advancing with a slight hint of Durian mixing in with other tropical notes and some minerality. Great balance if a little rich and it seems as though this could keep going on as long as the cork holds.
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9/3/2010 - 14frimaire wrote:
Wow. At peak.
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8/26/2010 - Keith Levenberg wrote: 93 Points
Says a lot about how well Muller-Catoir did in '98 that this actually tastes more youthful and fresher than the '01 did this week. Not quite as dynamic or powerful but still damn delicious.
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8/25/2010 - salil wrote: 94 Points
Not much that I can add to my previous notes on this. Just fantastic Riesling.
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6/23/2010 - Nanda wrote: 93 Points
Golden color. Full, beautiful nose leads with petrol with sweet white fruit, caramelized sugar and minerals in the background. Palate presents round, rich fruit with good acidic edge and moderate sweetness. Pure, delicious with an ethereal presence. This shows a mature balance -- without the intense acid or forward fruit of young Spats. Killer with Spoon Thai.
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2/27/2010 - salil wrote: 94 Points
Incredible wine, combining a kaleidoscope of bright fruit that ranges from citrus to the tropical with developed smoky and petrol accents and touches of spices and minerals, and a mouthfeel that somehow manages to feel creamy and rich while still keeping a sense of amazing freshness, energy and balance.
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11/23/2009 - salil wrote: 93 Points
A fascinating comparison with the '98 Spätlese halbtrocken from the same site; riper, sweeter and more tropical in its flavour profile with a developed creamy element showing amidst the bright white fruits and really good acidity again keeping it very precise and light on its feet. Fantastic wine as well, although I preferred the halbtrocken by a hair - but a real treat to enjoy both over the same evening.
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11/5/2009 - 14frimaire wrote:
Righteous.
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6/2/2009 - salil wrote: 94 Points
What a wine! Everything here that you can expect in a great bottle of Riesling, from bright primary citrus and tropical fruit flavours, intense minerality, smoke and spice with touches of honey, brilliant acidity and incredible precision and length. Absolutely stunning wine, and a real pleasure to sit down with this over dinner.
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2/27/2009 - KWC3141 wrote: 90 Points
This was a very nice bottle. Medium (+) golden color, nose of citrus and a touch of tropical, white flowers, and petrol. Good acidity and sweetness. Very enjoyable at dinner with friends.
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2/7/2009 - winefool wrote: 91 Points
Dinner at Schwa (Schwa): Nice riesling but showing more maturity than I would have guessed. Slightly caramel yellow color with a hint of caramel carrying through to the palate. Not sure if this was just a mature bottle, but if not, drink up.
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9/15/2008 - 14frimaire wrote:
As well as this showed in February, this bottle was even better. Just beautiful, medium-full, still sweet, but the sugar doesn't stick out at all. The secondary development has really kicked in.
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8/10/2008 - Rieslingfan wrote:
Stunningly good right now. Still some youthful fruit, but also full secondary development. Drink now and over the next 10 years.
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2/15/2008 - 14frimaire wrote:
I agree, this has turned the corner in a big way. It still has room for positive development, but it is very, very good right now. The color is bright gold, and the petrol note is in the background. What you get is tropical fruits and spice kept fresh with balancing, fully integrated acidity. If anything, it tastes fresher now than a few years ago.
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1/10/2008 - Rieslingfan wrote: 92 Points
Now showing much more development than a year ago. This still has lots of grapefruit and peach aromas and flavors, but is now joined by a full set of earthy, stony & smoky secondary elements. This is reaching its plateau of maturity where I expect it will stay for several years.
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11/18/2007 - Mlermontov wrote: 92 Points
Brunello Bash with Carlo (the Manor): baby - needs time. Althoug closed and only starting to give after a few hours in the decanter, this is a true Pfalz riesling, the green apples AND papaya, honey and pineapples. delicious - but give it a bit more time. YUM!
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4/26/2007 - Rieslingfan wrote:
It's been over a year since I last visited this wine. Development is ongoing, but likely not finished. There's still a tropical element to the nose, and that grapefruit note that is signature Catoir (at least old school Catoir). Crisp, lean and still full of fruit, this has turned into something much less sweet but much more food freindly that it was on release (when it was a bit of a monster). The fruity finish is persistent, but well balanced by firm acids. There's very little secondary nuance on the palate, but still lots of material, so look for further development here. From a cold cellar this has a good 10-15 years of life left in it, perhaps more. This doesn't sound like a particularly laudatory note, but what this wine has is supreme balance. At age 9 it's just coming into its own. Age 12-15 will see this approaching maturity, with the full breed of the wine coming out. Classic, old-school (read Hans-Gunter Schwarz) Catoir.
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12/1/2006 - VDLT Wine wrote:
Seemed a bit tight. Trouble focusing. Nice overall.
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2/26/2006 - Rieslingfan wrote: 94 Points
Great Riesling! This wine is still a baby, but it still has lots to show: tropical fruit, creamy mouthfeel & solid Auslese weight (in a Spatlese!). Not too sweet for food, but also with sufficient sugar, fruit and acid to age for a long, long time. This is the real deal & perhaps the best Spatlese ever from Catoir.
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5/24/2005 - 14frimaire wrote:
While good now, I think this is still closed. I got a pretty heavy dose of petrol on the nose, and it really hasn't begun to unfold. The color has evolved since last I had this a couple of years ago; it's maybe a medium, light gold. And the finish is quite powerful. I'm going to try to keep hands off for at least a couple more years.
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2/18/2005 - wilfyu wrote: 90 Points
Bright yellow with a tremendous nose of tropical fruits. Medium to full body. Very well balance with hints of pears, peaches and lychee. Drinking very well right now with a medium finish and will last for another decade. A bit too sweet for me though.
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8/28/2004 - JeffGMorris wrote: 90 Points
AP #19-99. Light yellow in color, this youthful wine had an exuberant nose from the start. Loaded with peaches, pears, tropical fruits and light petrol, this is a ripe, concentrated, unctuous wine that has excellent balance. Full bodied and a medium length finish, this wine will continue to age well if I can keep from drinking the remaining bottles in the short term. 50+12+12+8+8 = 90.
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