WTN: More 2007 Germans at Dee Vine

An early start to get my newly minted San Francisco library card, no luck rummaging the thrift shops, and finally onto more 2007 Germans at Dee Vine Wines. Overall thoughts: wow on Von Hövel and the Saar for 2007--zing drink immediately wines. I'm still not feeling the love for the Middle Mosel--but don't know if that is this year, a function of comparative tasting (may not show well when pitched against Saar wines, for example), needing time, experiencing more producers or what. Happy to hear that Dee Vine is now carrying two Franken producers (Hans Wirsching and Schloss Sommerhausen). Keep 'em coming! And I sure am having withdrawal pains from the trocken wines--a few come across my path, but I wish I ran into more of them stateside. Onto the wines:

The 2005 Josef Rosch Leiwener Klostergarten Riesling Brut Winzersekt (Middle Mosel) started things off. I had not encountered this producer before, but was told they go with organic farming, native yeasts, and, for this sekt, not only is it produced via the traditional method with the second fermentation in the bottle, but hand riddled as well (as does Schramsberg just a short distance north of here). Here I had an expressive spiced nose, reminded me of a gewürztraminer and the mouthfeel was broad, softier and foamier than I expected, tasting of nice fruit with a crispy finish. Memorable and tasty, but not a steal at $32. Then onto the 2007 Keller Estate Riesling Qualitätswein Trocken (Rheinhessen) which had a soft, fruity, almost peanut buttery nose and a focused, mineral, inward facing feel to it. Evidently, limestone is supposed to be the name of the game with Keller. This one was tasty, but a bit blunt with that peach pit feel to the finish--I like minerals, but perhaps not the rougher ones. $21 for that one. The 2007 Keller Estate Riesling Qualitätswein Trocken Von der Fils (Rheinhessen) had a lot going for it. A beautiful, interesting and delicate balance on the nose and nice lime acid and dry rocks within. If felt a bit tight at the moment, and though it impressed, it was too intense for me at the moment. The $32 pricetag reflects that the fruit comes from the Grosses Gewächs vineyards--so pretty good ingredients here. Onto the Kabinetten with the 2007 Von Hövel Scharzhofberg Riesling Kabinett #6 (Saar). Von Hövel won the day for me here, so if they are at all representative of what the Saar did in 2007--then all I have to chant is Saar, baby, Saar. The Kabinett had a softer, more reserved nose and tasted like a beautiful integration of sugar, lemon, and mango, a dry limey fruit juice. Yum and at $21 not prone to regretting downing a bottle so fast (alas, not cheap, but doable). The 2007 Josef Rosch Leiwener Klostergarten Riesling Kabinett (Middle Mosel) on the other hand had a brighter, more expressive nose, but its charming full fruity honey didn't have that acid zip (woe to Middle Mosels tasted after Saars). The honey fruit was nice, though, and less than $17.

Onto the Spätlesen with the incredible 2007 Von Hövel Scharzhofberg Riesling Spätlese (Saar) with a beautiful complex savory nose and a delicate intense and delicious lime pickle spice element that suggests chicken as a pairing. Bang zoom, wonderful stuff, and less than $25. The 2007 Josef Rosch Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling Spätlese (Middle Mosel) had a tender, interesting nose and was heavier in the mouth, but its honey had a bit more zip, tasty but that intense honey element can make it a harder sell for me at the moment, but cleansing acid here helped, $29. The nose of the 2007 Prinz Hallgartener Jungfer Riesling Spätlese Goldkapsel (Rheingau) was a bit flatter today, but, wow, in my mouth it was completely different--soft, multilayered, quite laid back, a gentle ride with a finish of champions. Not too much of anything here and after bringing you through some nice cloud formations it sets you so gently back on your feet, you don't feel like you ever moved. $40 for a 750 ml and worth taking a chance on a $24 375ml. I was a bit more puzzled by the 2007 Keller Westhofener Kirchspiel Riesling Spätlese Goldkapsel (Rheinhessen) with a wafting perfumed nose with some rocks and a taste of bizarre rich honey fruit without that honey 'bite' I tend not to like. Didn't know what to make of this, but the thickness would lead me to let it sit awhile. But, yeah, $49 means it won't be sitting in my abode. Finally the prizefighter is back in the ring as the 2007 Von Hövel Scharzhofberg Riesling Auslese (Saar) offers a drier nose of flowers and a spicier backbone, plenty of zip, and delicious on a very pointed and precarious balance.

The 2007 Von Hövel Scharzhofberg Riesling Auslese* #12 (Saar) (with the star noting the additional must weight of this selection, I believe) had a much different nose--at times more and at times less expressive, but curiously (yet quite pleasantly) reminiscent of deodorant or some product in the baby aisle. Whereas the no-star Auslese had been about a wine balanced on the point of a pin of acidity, this one-star rounded it out with more body, more rounded, juiciness aplenty. I think there might be things worth waiting for with this one, whereas the no-star was so immediately delicious, I don't think I could wait on it. $48 for the one-star and $38 for the no-star (this is where we need half-bottles, people!). The 2007 Josef Rosch Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling Auslese* (Middle Mosel) had a darker, very intense nose and a great lime and savory combo taste. This wine screamed out its identity as a food wine, $48 for a 500ml bottle. A bit less impressive at the moment, but with a great future, the 2007 Von Hövel Kanzemer Hörecker Riesling Auslese* (Saar) had a vibrant tropical nose and a solid attack on the tongue with good thick sugar, but not showing much beyond, solid but not exciting at the moment. My guess is it might go interesting places, however, $48. Another hard one to gauge was the 2007 Prinz Hallgartener Jungfer Riesling Auslese (Rheingau) with a floral gewürztramineresque nose and heavy sugar--I mean heavy--this thing felt like it had a half-life of 46 million years. Not sugary/syrupy/overly sweet. Just heavy. A black hole in my mouth. Hard to decipher and $48 for a 375 ml. Mistakenly opened by the staff (and likely one of the big sellers of the day) the 2007 Josef Rosch Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling Auslese*** (Middle Mosel) had a wow, layered nose and was thick and sticky in my mouth, but with quite a bit of delicacy. Beerenauslese-level ripeness here and this thing is drinkable. Nice and $67 for a 375ml (I think. maybe it was for a 500ml). And to finish things off and keep them fresh, toss in another grape with the 2007 Keller Monsheimer Silberberg Rieslaner Beerenauslese Goldkapsel (Rheinhessen) with a jumpy, bumpy nose (don't ask) and somewhat gummy and warm but though it is sticky in my mouth, it isn't as intense as I'd expect, easily and eminently drinkable. But at $56 for 375ml, not necessary.

Lively chats ensued as a group formed around the 1999 Dönnhoff Riesling QbA (Nahe) with its fantastic nose of a stone celler and nice faded richness of its fruit. Plenty of smoke and flint on the finish. The rough underbody here is rather enjoyable. The 1997 Peter Jakob Kühn Oestricher Lenchen Riesling Kabinett (Rheingau) started back-and-forth discussions of 'what ever happened to Kühn' and discussions of his latest attempt to take it to the limit, one more time. The wine, however, smelled what some might call petrol. I called it motorboat. Specifically, a Johnson outboard 55 horsepower, if you must know. The childhood memories came on pretty strong once I got a whiff of this wine. Again there was faded richness, but this one felt a bit more refreshing and cleansing on the palate. Interesting. And, finally, yea! a birthyear wine for me with the 1976 Staatsweingüter Kloster Eberbach Kiedricher Gräfenberg Riesling Auslese (Rheingau) with one of the most phenomenal noses I've encountered. Rich, hot, spicy curry, a Christmas tree of scents. Smelled this a long, long time before moving on. The wine underneath was certainly a bit faded, more about revealing its underlying secrets. Intellectually interesting, but what a contrast to the sensuous side of its aromas. Very interesting indeed.

Edited to add AP number to Scharzhofberg Auslese* and Scharzhofberg Kabinett

von Hövel did a home-run in 2007 - everything is classical and thoroughly enjoyable. I hope to see von Hövel next week to taste the portfolio fully (only tasted a couple of wines so far).

BTW, I understand that there are two Scharzhofberger Auslese* - so it might be good to provide AP. I had the AP12 and it was singing in June: citrus botrytis and everything. The classical feine Auslese.

I'm another big fan of von Hövel in general and from my limited exposure I think they did very well in 07. It's a shame that Dee Vine doesn't have the Hutte bottlings, as those are usually more exciting than the Scharzhofberger wines, but the latter are so cheap and Dee Vine has such an extensive selection that one can easily (and with good reason) forget about the other wines..

I understand that there are two Scharzhofberger Auslese* - so it might be good to provide AP. I had the AP12 and it was singing in June: citrus botrytis and everything. The classical feine Auslese.

I edited in the number designation -- it was the 12. Thanks for pointing this out.

Thanks for being our nose, I wanted to go to the tasting but didn't have the time.

Walt

I understand that there are two Scharzhofberger Auslese* - so it might be good to provide AP. I had the AP12 and it was singing in June: citrus botrytis and everything. The classical feine Auslese.

I edited in the number designation -- it was the 12. Thanks for pointing this out.

Actually, just leared that there are also two Scharzhofberger Kabinett - your's was the AP6 bottled in March. There is now also an AP17 which has spent a little longer in stainless steel.

FYI - The other Scharzhofberger Auslese* is the -11- and this will be hammered down next Friday at the auction.

I retasted yesterday the full portfolio at the Estate and was particularly impressed by the Hütte Spätlese and Hütte Auslese *, which in comparison to the Scharzhofberger Auslese * -12- was more balanced and was less aggressive on the palate. Both wines nevertheless passed the ultimate test, that of my wallet

Actually, just leared that there are also two Scharzhofberger Kabinett - your's was the AP6 bottled in March. There is now also an AP17 which has spent a little longer in stainless steel.

Duly added, thanks Jean.

I will be very interested to try the Hütte bottlings should I get the chance. Sounds great.

The Oberemmeler Hütte bottlings are indeed very nice. I had over the last couple of days a bottle of Scharzhofberger Auslese* -12- and the wine is just closed. After two days, it is singing even if the level of tartaric acidity remains quite present.