| | My first large tasting of Theise's wines. I've separated some of the star wineries from my perspective. Austrian Wines Even though these wines are all together, there were some very nice wines and great values out there. Prieler's Blaufrankisch was excellent, and Hofer,Berger, Ecker and Schwarzbock all offered great value. - 2008 Heidi Schröck Muscat - Austria, Burgenland, Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
Sweet, floral and nice fruit. Good, but how 'bout that price? (87 pts.)
- 2008 Heidi Schröck Furmint - Austria, Burgenland, Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
A little more body then I expected. Ok. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Familie Prieler Pinot Blanc Ried Seeberg - Austria, Burgenland, Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
Round, full bodied Pinot Blanc. Soft, and very nice. 87-88 (88 pts.)
- 2007 Weingut Familie Prieler Blaufränkisch Johanneshöhe - Austria, Burgenland, Neusiedlersee-Hügelland, Leithaberg
Sweet, easy drinking style, with raspberries and cherries. Delicious. Some spice comes on in the back palate. Tasty stuff. (88 pts.)
- 2007 Weingut Familie Prieler Schützner Stein - Austria, Burgenland, Neusiedlersee-Hügelland
Nice fruit. Richer and fuller style then the regular Blaufankisch. Great finish, although a little oaky. (90 pts.)
- 2008 Paul Lehrner Claus - Austria, Burgenland, Mittelburgenland
Easy going. Some rich fruit. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Sattler St. Laurent - Austria, Burgenland, Neusiedlersee
Soft. Easy going. Solid little red. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Sattler Zweigelt - Austria, Burgenland, Mittelburgenland
Easy going. Soft, accesable wine. A little Merlot like. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Ecker-Eckhof Grüner Veltliner - Austria, Niederösterreich, Wagram
Solid, every day white. Ok. 86-87 (86 pts.)
- 2006 Weingut Ecker-Eckhof Zweigelt - Austria
Somewhat sweet. Hints of prunes. Doesn't balance well for me, but does have a nice spicy finish. 85-87 (86 pts.)
- 2009 Bio-Weingut H. u. M. Hofer Grüner Veltliner - Austria, Niederösterreich, Weinviertel
3/23: Good fruit. Some pepper. Slightly sweet. Ok. 85-86
1/19: White pepper. Fresh. Ok. 86-87 (86 pts.)
- 2008 Bio-Weingut H. u. M. Hofer Grüner Veltliner Freiberg - Austria, Niederösterreich, Weinviertel
Medium bodied. Nice richness, almost creamy. Very good. (88 pts.)
- 2008 Bio-Weingut H. u. M. Hofer Zweigelt - Austria, Niederösterreich
Bright red fruits. A strange, almost tomato thing. Ok. 85-86 (85 pts.)
- 2008 Schwarzböck Grüner Veltliner - Austria, Niederösterreich
Al right. Pretty typical Gruner. 86-87 (87 pts.)
- 2008 Schwarzböck Grüner Veltliner Kirchberg - Austria, Niederösterreich
Ok. Medium bodied. Solidly made. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Setzer Grüner Veltliner - Austria, Niederösterreich, Weinviertel
Clean. Lots of saline qualities. Good. 87+ (87 pts.)
- 2009 Weingut Berger Grüner Veltliner - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kremstal
Solid every day GV. Ok. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Berger Zweigelt - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kremstal
Easy going. Solidly made. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Hiedler Grüner Veltliner Löss - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
Ok. Some saline. Solid. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Hiedler Riesling Urgestein - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
Ok. Medium bodied. GV like. 87-88 (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Hirsch Riesling Gaisberg - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
Slightly sweet. Good. (89 pts.)
- 2008 Schloss Gobelsburg Grüner Veltliner Reserve Steinsetz - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
White pepper. Complex. Great stuff. 90-91 (90 pts.)
- 2008 Schloss Gobelsburg Grüner Veltliner Kammerner Renner - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
Ok. Creamy. Nice. (87 pts.)
- 2009 Schloss Gobelsburg Riesling Gobelsburger - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
Medium bodied. Saline like. Ok (87 pts.)
Glatzer Easily the best values on the Austrian side. These were very nice wines, at the same quality of many producer's who were charging a couple bucks more. - 2008 Weingut Glatzer Grüner Veltliner - Austria, Niederösterreich, Carnuntum
3/5/10: Some prickles at first. White pepper. Slightly understated, but undoubtedly a nice little Gruner. 87-88
1/19/10: Easy going Gruner. Some light pepper notes. Very refreshing in the palate. 87-88 (88 pts.)
- 2007 Weingut Glatzer St. Laurent Altenberg - Austria, Niederösterreich, Carnuntum
Easy going. Bright and mellow. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Glatzer Zweigelt Riedencuvée - Austria, Niederösterreich, Carnuntum
Easy going. A little vanilla thing going on here. Soft. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Glatzer Zweigelt Dornenvogel - Austria, Niederösterreich, Carnuntum
Richer wine. Some viscosity. Tastes very New World. Not sure if I like this much. 87? (87 pts.)
- 2007 Weingut Glatzer Blaufränkisch - Austria, Niederösterreich, Carnuntum
6/29/10: Some spice. Plums and tomato. Good, but not much better then that. 87+
2/26/10: Spicy. light to medium bodied. Really delicious stuff, so well balanced. Lots of spices and herbs. 88
1/19/10: Spicy. yummy. Medium bodied. Just fun trying to pick out the spices on this wine. Very enjoyable. 88+ (88 pts.)
Nigl Another table that really excelled. I'm really looking forward to both the German and Austrian '09's, and the Freiheit was one of the major reasons why. These wines are priced well, too. - 2009 Nigl Grüner Veltliner Kremser Freiheit - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kremstal
5/28/10: Spice. Herbs, a hint of banana, and the Heff thing going on. That's all in the aromatics. On the palate, it is quite nice, but not at the level I remember from the large tasting, and I'm not sure I'd really get that excited about it at the $20+ price tag it commands. 88
1/19/10: Amazing nose. Really stunning. Has a Heffewiezen thing going on with bananas and the herbal aromas. Great stuff. 90-91 (89 pts.)
- 2008 Nigl Grüner Veltliner Privat - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kremstal
Very soft. Nice, but I'm not in love with this. (88 pts.)
- 2008 Nigl Riesling Privat - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kremstal
Bright and clean. Appley. High acid. Very high intensity. This is very nice stuff. 90+ (90 pts.)
Salomon More great wines, although not the value play of others. The name is too known. The '96 Library Reserve Riesling was probably my favorite wine of the day. - 2009 Weingut Salomon Undhof Grüner Veltliner Hochterrassen - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kremstal
Bright beautiful nose. Green apples. Soft, but has a nice luscious quality to it. A little creaminess. This is a great wine for the money. 89-90 (90 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Salomon Undhof Riesling Undhof Kögl - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kremstal
Medium body. Solid. Good fruit. Nice intensity, and a great, long lasting finish. 88-89 (89 pts.)
- 1996 Weingut Salomon Undhof Riesling Library Reserve Pfaffenberg - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kremstal
Red delicious apples at first on an unbelievably complex nose. Amazing stuff. Tons of viscosity, a little petrol. Roch apples flavors. Really stellar. Finish doesn't end. Just a whisper of oxidation on the finish, but this is world class stuff. (94 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Salomon Undhof Riesling Steinterrassen - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kremstal
A little spice. Good fruit and balance. (88 pts.)
Brundlmayer One of the big names, and they didn't disappoint. Probably the best table today. The Alte Reben is probably the best GV I've ever had. - 2008 Weingut Willi Bründlmayer Grüner Veltliner Terrassen Kamptal - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
Juicy. Medium body. Very good stuff. (89 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Willi Bründlmayer Grüner Veltliner Alte Reben Kamptal Reserve - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
White pepper, spice. Very serious Gruner. Amazing finish. This is probably the best Gruner I've ever had. 93+ (93 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Willi Bründlmayer Riesling Terrassen Kamptal - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
Bright. Dry complex. Very good stuff. (90 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Willi Bründlmayer Riesling Langenloiser Steinmassel - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
Gorgeous nose. medium bodied. Apples. Really great stuff, that gains intensity through the process of trying it. 91-92 (91 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Willi Bründlmayer Riesling Zöbinger Heiligenstein - Austria, Niederösterreich, Kamptal
A littler fuller bodied than the Steinmassel. Very focused. Great once again. 90-92 (91 pts.)
Misc. German Wines Some really nice wines thrown in here. I skipped most of the Christoffel wines due to palate fatigue. Happily the Kabinetts seemed to be the stars of the '08 vintage, and I don't have a problem with that. - 2008 Joh. Jos. Christoffel Erben Erdener Treppchen Riesling Kabinett Fass 9 - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Sweet. Solid. Ok. Maybe too sweet for the acidity. 89-90+? (90 pts.)
- 2008 Hoffmann-Simon Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
(86 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Reuscher-Haart Piesporter Riesling - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Sweet. Ok. 86ish. (86 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Reuscher-Haart Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Green apples. Sweet, but with high acid.
- 2008 Jakoby-Mathy Riesling "Balance" - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Lots of grapefruit. Clean, with a great front palate. Very good. 88+ (88 pts.)
- 2008 Jakoby-Mathy Kinheimer Rosenberg Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Great apple fruit. Birght and fresh, with a clean, piercing finish. (88 pts.)
- 2008 Willi Schaefer Riesling - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Soft. Great fruit. Very nice. 87-88 (88 pts.)
- 2008 Carl Loewen Leiwener Klostergarten Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
A little more green apple profile. Good. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut von Othegraven Kanzemer Altenberg Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Good. Nice green apple profile. Well balanced. A little bite on the finish, in a good way. 87-88 (88 pts.)
- 2008 Carl Schmitt-Wagner Longuicher Maximiner Herrenberg Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Very nicely balanced. Not too sweet. Pineapples. Great stuff. 91+ (91 pts.)
- 2005 Willi Schaefer Graacher Domprobst Riesling Auslese #6 - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Intense, amazing stuff. hold 92-93 (93 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Jakob Schneider Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Nahe
Off dry in style. Good fruit, balanced. Very nice. 87-88 (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Jakob Schneider Niederhäuser Klamm Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Nahe
Some sweetness. Ok. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Kruger-Rumpf Münsterer Rheinberg Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Nahe
Some spiciness. Sweet. Ok. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Kruger-Rumpf Münsterer Dautenpflänzer Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Nahe
Sweet. Kind of gives me the eh? feeling. 86-88 (87 pts.)
- 2008 Kruger-Rumpf Binger Scharlachberg Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Rheinhessen
Nice, drier than last wine. interesting. 88+ (88 pts.)
- 2008 Schlossgut Diel Dorsheimer Goldloch Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Nahe
Sweet. Ok. 86-87 (87 pts.)
- 2008 Schlossgut Diel Dorsheimer Pittermännchen Riesling - Germany, Nahe
Pineapples, sweet, ok. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Spreitzer Riesling Trocken - Germany, Rheingau
Austure. Doesn't do it for me. 83-85 (84 pts.)
- 2008 J & HA Strub Riesling "Soil to Soul" - Germany, Rheinhessen
Ok. Kind of rich. A little boring. 85-86 (85 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Alexander Gysler Weinheimer Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Rheinhessen
Interesting nose. Grapefruit, pineapple. Sweet and tangy. Good. 87+ (87 pts.)
- 2008 Johann Geil Bechtheimer Rosengarten Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Rheinhessen
Softer, easy going. Good fruit. nice. 87-88 (88 pts.)
- 2008 Johann Geil Bechtheimer Heilig-Kreuz Scheurebe Kabinett - Germany, Rheinhessen
4/16/10: Exotic tropical fruits on the nose. Layered. Bright tropical/citurs fruits on a med+ mouth feel. Touch of sweetness, but it's part of the harmonious whole, doesn't stand out at all. Delicious. 89
1/19/10: Great citrus, pineapple nose. Very expressive. Round and soft, with a lot more tropical fruit coming on. Yummy stuff. 88+ (89 pts.)
- 2008 J & HA Strub Niersteiner Paterberg Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Rheinhessen
Muted nose. Very sweet. Nice focus. Good. 87-88 (88 pts.)
- 2008 Dr. Deinhard Forster Ungeheuer Riesling Kabinett trocken - Germany, Pfalz
I'm not sure what to think about this.
- 2008 Dr. Deinhard Deidesheimer Langenmorgen Riesling Großes Gewächs - Germany, Pfalz
Nice body and richness. Great, bright finish. yummy. 88-90 (89 pts.)
- 2007 Deinhard Gimmeldinger Schlössel Riesling Kabinett feinherb - Germany, Pfalz
Easy going, drier style. Some sea air quality. (88 pts.)
- 2008 Dr. Deinhard Ruppertsberger Reiterpfad Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Pfalz
Soft easy going. Simple. 86-87 (86 pts.)
- 2007 Dr. Deinhard Forster Ungeheuer Riesling Auslese - Germany, Pfalz
Very sweet. Tropical fruits. Ok. 88+ (88 pts.)
- 2008 Theo Minges Gleisweiler Holle Riesling Kabinett trocken - Germany, Pfalz
Bright, with saline notes. Very good. 89-91 (90 pts.)
- 2008 Theo Minges Riesling halbtrocken - Germany, Pfalz
Bright, maybe a little shrill. (87 pts.)
- 2008 Theo Minges Gleisweiler Holle Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Pfalz
A little sweet. (86 pts.)
- 2008 Eugen Müller Forster Mariengarten Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Pfalz
Clean and concentrated. Layered. Yummy. (89 pts.)
- 2008 Darting Dürkheimer Nonnengarten Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Pfalz
Clean and bright. Nice acidity. Very good. 88+ (88 pts.)
- 2008 Darting Dürkheimer Hochbenn Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Pfalz
Softer. Focused. Ok. 87-88 (87 pts.)
- 2008 Darting Ungsteiner Herrenberg Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Pfalz
Soft, easy going. Good. 89+ (89 pts.)
Selbach-Oster A dizzying variety of wines, ranging from great values to just great wines. - 2008 Selbach Riesling Dry Fish Label - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
6/29/10: Bright. Some body here. Nice fruit. Pretty tasty stuff. This seems to be better each time I try it. 88
3/29/10: Dry. Great acidity. Clean and delicious. 87-88
1/19/10: Easy going. Some saline qualities. Solid entry level wine. 87+ (88 pts.)
- 2008 Selbach Riesling Kabinett Fish Label - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Slightly off dry. Great fruit. Very solid entry level Kabinett. 87 (87 pts.)
- 2008 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Himmelreich Riesling Kabinett halbtrocken - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Dryish. Clean and bright. Very Good. (88 pts.)
- 2008 Selbach-Oster Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Focused. Clean and bright. Very good. (89 pts.)
- 2008 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Medium bodied. Pretty sweet. Doesn't really have a great balance for me. 87-88 (87 pts.)
- 2008 Selbach Saar Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Pretty. Very clean. Off dry. Lower acididty, but quite enjoyable. 87-89 (88 pts.)
- 2008 Selbach-Oster Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Soft, sweet. High acidity.
- 2008 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
(90 pts.)
- 2008 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Schlossberg Riesling 'Schmitt' - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
Very sweet. Dessert style. Intense. 90-91 (91 pts.)
Hexamer These were some great wines, and fairly priced to boot. Donnhoff Not a surprise about the quality here. I do wish there were a few more wines present, but I suppose there's not a great need to show that many. Leitz This was pretty easily the best value German table out there. Just amazing entry level stuff. I wonder how much of this had to do with the fact that he was pouring the '09's. - 2009 Weingut Josef Leitz Riesling Eins Zwei Dry "3" - Germany, Rheingau
Some pepper here. Very well balanced. Good. 87+ (87 pts.)
- 2008 Weingut Josef Leitz Riesling Leitz Out - Germany, Rheingau
3/26/10: Great pineapple and tropical fruit. A little sweet, but nice acidity. This really over delivers at the price point ($13). Has some layers, and is just a pleasure. 87-88
1/19/10: A touch of sweetness. Some minerality and spicy stuff going on. This is very good, and would well serve as an every day Riesling. 87+ (87 pts.)
- 2009 Weingut Josef Leitz Rüdesheimer Drachenstein Riesling Dragonstone - Germany, Rheingau
6/29/10: Fairly sweet. more intense then the Leitz Out. Some layers here. This is good. 88+
1/19/10: This is a clean, cool wine. Great apple fruit. Some nice roundness, this is gorgeous, and another good value from the Leitz stable. 89+ (88 pts.)
- 2009 Weingut Josef Leitz Rüdesheimer Klosterlay Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Rheingau
Great smokey minerally nose. Lots of stuff here. Very well balanced. Terrific stuff. (90 pts.)
- 2009 Weingut Josef Leitz Rüdesheimer Magdalenenkreuz Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Rheingau
Sweet, really needs some more time. Pineapple. Intense stuff. 89-90+ (90 pts.)
- 2007 Weingut Josef Leitz Rüdesheimer Berg Schloßberg Riesling Spätlese - Germany, Rheingau
Sweet. Soft. Good, but not getting me really excited. 89-90 (89 pts.)
- 2006 Weingut Josef Leitz Rüdesheimer Klosterlay Riesling Auslese - Germany, Rheingau
Very sweet, dessert like. Needs more time. Not really my style, but I dig the pricing. 88+ (88 pts.)
Messmer A special mention because I really dug these two liter bottles. - 2008 Meßmer Spätburgunder Trocken - Germany, Pfalz
3/20: High acid, cherries. A little earth. I still like this, and think it offers a good value, but maybe not at the level I found at the tasting a couple months ago. 86
1/19/10: Earthy funky wine. Dry. Quite nice. 87+ (86 pts.)
- 2008 Meßmer Riesling - Germany, Pfalz
Birght, easy going wine. Nice minerality. (87 pts.)
Burgundy, and 1 Italian There were many tables of Pinot Noir out there, but I just tried the Burgs. - 2007 Domaine Marc Roy Gevrey-Chambertin Vieilles Vignes - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin
Spicy. Tighly wound. Red cherries. (89 pts.)
- 2007 Domaine Marc Roy Gevrey-Chambertin Clos Prieur - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin
this is great. A little excess oak that needs to hopefully integrate. Nice earth, high acid. 91-92 (91 pts.)
- 2006 Domaine Marc Roy Gevrey-Chambertin Cuvée Alexandrine - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin
Very elegant nose. High acid. Good. A little oaky. 90-92 (91 pts.)
- 2007 Domaine de L'Arlot Côte de Nuits Villages Clos du Chapeau - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Côte de Nuits Villages
Earthy, soft. Good. 89-90 (89 pts.)
- 2007 Domaine de L'Arlot Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Cuvée Les Petits Plets - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru
Soft. Cherries. Tannic. Nice. 90-91 (90 pts.)
- 2007 Domaine de L'Arlot Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Clos des Forêts St. Georges - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru
This is a killer bottle. Soft and silky. Very nice stuff. 92ish (92 pts.)
- 2007 David Duband Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits Cuvée Louis Auguste - France, Burgundy, Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Nuits
A touch of Earth. Bright. Good. 87-88 (87 pts.)
- 2007 David Duband Chambolle-Musigny - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Chambolle-Musigny
Some funk. Silky on the palate though. Very nice Burgundy. (91 pts.)
- 2007 David Duband Vosne-Romanée - France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée
Soft, silky. (91 pts.)
- 2006 Rainoldi Valtellina Superiore - Sassella - Italy, Lombardia, Valtellina, Valtellina Superiore - Sassella
Funky stuff. Lots of tar. Good. 87-88 (87 pts.)
|
