2001 Dönnhoff Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spätlese trocken

• By David Schildknecht
  November/December 2002, IWC Issue #105, (See more on Vinous...)

  (Hermann Donnhoff Niederhauser Hermannshohle Riesling Spatlese Trocken) Login and sign up and see review text.

Rockss and Fruit

• By Lyle Fass
  3/10/2009, (See more on Rockss and Fruit...)

  (Donnhoff Niederahuser Hermannshöhle Riesling Spatlese Trocken) This was dead as a doornail. Last time I had this wine, around a year ago, it was closed, or so I thought. I have had absolutely spectacular bottles of this in the past. At one time it was the greatest German dry wine I have ever had. Those days are long gone. Last night it was a shrill, medicinal, fruitless wine with too much acid. Like a skeleton of its former self. I know you are not allowed to criticize the god-like winery Donnhoff on the wine internet but people are not gonna get to the bottom of this if every time you criticize Donnhoff you get attacked by the legion of Donnhoff defenders on the wine internet. You know who you are. I bring this up because i have a lot of Donnhoff in my cellar and am officially worried about the mid to long term prospects of these wines. With the 2000 Brucke GK Spatlese and now this 01 Spat Trocken way over the hill I worry. Yes I have some nebbish Woody characteristics but this is real worry not some fake neurotic Jew stuff. I know its not the Mosel where Prum Kabinetts age 30 years but the Nahe is a great region and has a small cadre of star producers. But I am not the first person to say that Donnhoffs don't age well and I know I won't be the last. I know what a closed wine tastes like and I know what heat damage tastes, smells and looks like and it was not those things at all. I have had an ocean of German wine and know what they taste like when they are fading, faded or closed. This and the Oberhauser Brucke Spat GK were wines that were over the hill. Little or no fruit left on the Brucke while the Hermannshohle tasted like liquid baby aspirin which is a dead giveaway when a trocken wine is over the hill.

• By Lyle Fass
  4/21/2008, (See more on Rockss and Fruit...)

  (Donnhoff Niederhauser Hermannshohle Spatlese Trocken) This was lovely but could of used a bit more air. It had lovely notes of celery, mineral, red fruits and some petrol. The palate was soft as a pillow but in no way lacking acidity. Just so elegant it started to instantly linger and then snapped on the finish with strong acidity and minerals. This wine really needs a big decant now or five more years in the cellar. The last two or three times I have had this it was closed down. Right upon release it was out of this world.

• By Lyle Fass
  11/16/2006, (See more on Rockss and Fruit...)

  (Donnhoff Niederhauser Hermannshohle Spatlese Trocken) This is a great wine and remains one of the top German wines I have ever had..albeit a bit closed at this stage in its life. Nose of celeriac, red fruits and a blast of minerals. Palate is tight, highly concentrated and pretty acidic. Tightly wound but with an amazing amount of material and purity. The length is incredible as is the mid-palate but all in all this is not fully expressive.

• By Lyle Fass
  4/7/2005, (See more on Rockss and Fruit...)

  (Donnhoff Niederhauser Hermannshohle Spatlese Trocken) This is for me one of the benchmark German wines I have ever had the privilege of tasting. In my opinion it trumps the sweet version of this wine. Amazing purity with a stunning array of wet stone, pixie stick, tangerine, indian spice and deep mineral aromas. Constantly changing. Tremendous stone fruits with some nice citrus thrown in for tang. Truly stains your palate and has stunning elegance. Concentrated and light as a feather. Genius wine. I had one bottle that was better and one bottle just below the level of this one in the past year. This did not have the etheral featheriness of that previous bottle. But I have more so hopefully there will only be better bottles of this down the road.

• By Lyle Fass
  4/13/2004, (See more on Rockss and Fruit...)

  (Donnhoff Niederhauser Hermannshohle Spatlese Trocken) Simply a stunner. One of the most elegant wines I have ever had. So subtle you might miss it but when you get it . . . it is profound. Delicate nose of celery juice, minerals, white peach. Elegant yet penetrating nose. Juicy, ripe and phenomenally concentrated on the palate with balance that just awes you. Long , long, long and beautifully delineated. So elegant it is almost scary. Haunting I would say. This is wine made by a genius.

• By Lyle Fass
  4/13/2004, (See more on Rockss and Fruit...)

  (Donnhoff Niederhauser Hermannshohle Spatlese Trocken) Simply a stunner. One of the most elegant wines I have ever had. So subtle you might miss it but when you get it . . . it is profound. Delicate nose of celery juice, minerals, white peach. Elegant yet penetrating nose. Juicy, ripe and phenomenally concentrated on the palate with balance that just awes you. Long , long, long and beautifully delineated. So elegant it is almost scary. Haunting I would say. This is wine made by a genius.