Goldkapsel vs. Auction

What is the difference between the 2 Rieslings?

Goldkapsel is an indication that the wine is very special, so many winemakers will put it on Auction wines. But it is not limited to Auction wines.

Auction wines are of course sold through one of the special Auctions, as opposed to the various other channels.

Goldkapsel is an indication that the wine is very special, so many winemakers will put it on Auction wines. But it is not limited to Auction wines.

Auction wines are of course sold through one of the special Auctions, as opposed to the various other channels.

I have always been confused by how wines were designated to be Auction. I take it Goldkapsel trumps Auction.

Paging David.... David! .........DAVID!!!!!

Or Jean F.

A wine can be Goldkapsel (or long Goldkapsel) and/or Auction.
Of course, some producers use stars instead of gold capsules.
Then of course there are producers where they use gold capsules for everything.

[David M. Bueker]

Sorry...no real computer connections the last few days.

Rahsaan has the basics right. Dale is correct that there are myriad ways to identify a "gold capsule" bottling (or not).

Auction bottlings will typically be rarer than a gold capsule bottling sold at normal retail. Auction bottlings will also normally have a sticker on the neck of the bottle designating them as such.

Of course this all presumes that one subscribes to the theory that auction bottlings are "better" and worth their price. I am not one of those folks who agrees with that premise, as the price jump is typically very large for auction bottlings that are truly a step up from the regular (or commercially available gold capsule) release. One of the key differences is often a much higher level of botrytis, and you have to like what that does to a wine (honey, spice, sometimes a loss of varietal typicity) to see the auction wine as worth its price.

Case in point...I have a 2003 JJ Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese Auction, and yet, I see that there exists the same wine non-auction. It appears to me that it is the same vineyard, same vintage....so, what is the difference?

[David M. Bueker]

Case in point...I have a 2003 JJ Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese Auction, and yet, I see that there exists the same wine non-auction. It appears to me that it is the same vineyard, same vintage....so, what is the difference?

The auction bottling was a selected "lot" that Manfred Prum decided was different/distinctive enough from the rest of the Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese that it was worth bottling separately and being auctioned. Exactly how it is different I can't tell you, as I have not tasted it. I am sure that it was more expensive though.

The auction bottling was a selected "lot" that Manfred Prum decided was different/distinctive enough from the rest of the Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese that it was worth bottling separately and being auctioned. Exactly how it is different I can't tell you, as I have not tasted it. I am sure that it was more expensive though.

David - I'm not so sure it was more expensive. I know what I paid a couple of years ago, and it was not a heck of a lot. I'm not sure what the non-auction retailed for back then.

The reason I asked for the difference between Auction and Goldkapsel is at the dinner Dale and I are attending tomorrow night, someone is bringing the Auslese Goldkapsel, and I thought I owned the same wine until I took a closer look and saw it was the Auction, in addition to being a Spatlese.

[David M. Bueker]

Diane,

In the end the only difference is that the producer thinks it's a different enough batch that it was worth bottling separately.

If i'm correct the goldkapsel is used instead of the word Feinste on the label. So what was a Feinste Auslese pre 1971is now an auslese Goldkapsel, this is why you don't normally see BA/TBA white cap and a BA/TBA GK from one producer. Also because winemakers can't use the name of the Lage pre 1971 anymore the use of stars or gold capsules is a way to differentiate between different/better parts of a single vineyard.
Auction wines can be a Feinste Auslese, so the best auslese they made, which is now an auslese GK or it can be a BA or TBA or a special spätlese with for example more botrytis.

The auction bottling was a selected "lot" that Manfred Prum decided was different/distinctive enough from the rest of the Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese that it was worth bottling separately and being auctioned. Exactly how it is different I can't tell you, as I have not tasted it. I am sure that it was more expensive though.

David - I'm not so sure it was more expensive. I know what I paid a couple of years ago, and it was not a heck of a lot. I'm not sure what the non-auction retailed for back then.

The reason I asked for the difference between Auction and Goldkapsel is at the dinner Dale and I are attending tomorrow night, someone is bringing the Auslese Goldkapsel, and I thought I owned the same wine until I took a closer look and saw it was the Auction, in addition to being a Spatlese.

Diane
If you do open both, your thoughts on the differences would be very interesting to hear.
Regards
Ian

Ian - that's a good enough reason for us to open both - I'll plan on it.

Case in point...I have a 2003 JJ Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spatlese Auction, and yet, I see that there exists the same wine non-auction. It appears to me that it is the same vineyard, same vintage....so, what is the difference?

Diane, maybe I could add to what already has been written that a producer could choose to make several different bottlings of wines that are from the same origin and of the same ripeness (Spätlese in this case) and thus can have the same name on the label, i.e. Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spätlese. They could come from different parcels of this vineyards that have been vinified separately and finally, if the winemaker feel they are particular enough, also bottled separately. There is, however always a tiny but important difference to be found on the label, that is the A.P. number. If you compare the labels of the two almost identical bottles, you will find that the last two digits the A.P. Nr. that can be found somewhere near the bottom of it will be different. The two digits is used as a kind of serial number for the different bottling the producer makes (and also submits to the "Amtliche Prüfung", the official tasting that all the wines carrying a Prädikat, such as Spätles, has to pass). So, in your case: same vineyard, same vintage, same Prädikat, but not the same A.P. number.

I hope I managed to make this clear and not confuse you further,
Anders

Anders - it is becoming more clear if I am understanding correctly. The winemaker takes what he thinks are the best grapes from a specific vineyard and bottles those for an Auction bottling, and, maybe charges a few dollars more. Am I close? Is a GK like a riserva and it remains in barrel longer? I will be leaving for this dinner in a few minutes, so I will take the Auction bottle with me and see how it compares to the GK - although the Auction is a Spatlese and the GK is Auslese.

Anders - it is becoming more clear if I am understanding correctly. The winemaker takes what he thinks are the best grapes from a specific vineyard and bottles those for an Auction bottling, and, maybe charges a few dollars more. Am I close? Is a GK like a riserva and it remains in barrel longer? I will be leaving for this dinner in a few minutes, so I will take the Auction bottle with me and see how it compares to the GK - although the Auction is a Spatlese and the GK is Auslese.

I guess you've left by now, but just quickly: No, not necessarily for longer in the barrel, though I guess that might be the case sometimes, but, as you say, selected grapes, vinified in separate barrels, or vice versa, in fact: the best barrels might be selected for the separate top bottlings by tasting them after the vinification. Then, I suppose, that the wine maker could choose to submit a GK to the auction since this designation is used to signal to the consumer that it is a premium wine. thus, there is not necessarily a hierarchy between GK (or LGK, Lange (Long) GoldKapsel) and an auction wine.
We're looking forward to here about your tasting, Diane,
Anders

Hi Diane,
Hope you enjoyed your dinner. I’m not sure when the wine was actually auctioned? But I would assume if a “young” or “new” wine were auction off at one of German’s annual official VDP sponsored auctions, the winery might be trying to get a “feel” for what he/she could sell the wine for.

Salute

Diane,

Auction and goldkap are used to define special bottlings but nevertheless they are independent concepts in practice. How confusing is that?

If I may make a huge oversimplication, i'd put it this way:

1. Goldkap is a tool used by makers to differentiate the styles of auslese bottlings and a gradation in their portfolio: in a good vintage, a maker like JJ Prüm will make "white cap" auslese, goldcap auslese and even long goldkap auslese from a specific vineyard. The difference is a combination of quality of fruit and above all degree of affection by botrytis: none for the white cap,a little for the goldcap, more for the long goldcap.

2. You can think of Auction bottlings as a sort of "cuvée vieille vigne" or "cuvée spéciale": special efforts go into making them (specific parcel, special tries, etc.). However, they follow rarely a different raising programme (it is not as in Bordeaux where special cuvées then get a more liscious oak treatment).

Such "Auction" ("cuvée spéciale") bottlings can be made at any level: kabinett, spätlese, auslese, auslese goldcap, etc. To take Prüm, the portfolio has been rather complete in the latest vintage as it was usually composed of

spätlese
spätlese auction
auslese "whitecap"
auslese auction
auslese goldcap
auslese goldcap auction
auslese long goldcap (only auction)

J

Jean - thank you for trying.

Both 2003s showed tremendous amounts of sulphur which blew off after a while. The Spatlese Auction was a lighter wine with a creamy palate and hints of petrol and mango, and a lovely finish. The Auslese Goldkapsel was a bigger wine showing more petrol than fruit and a shorter finish. The GK seems to have the potential to be the long distance runner, while I like the Spatlese Auction for the sprint.

Diane
Many thanks for the update!
regards
Ian