WTN: NikWeis Wiltinger Riesling '13..(short/boring)

Cracked this btl to try ystrday w/ John:
1. NikWeis St.Urbans-Hof Wiltinger Riesling AlteReben (Pradikatswein; 9.0%; A.P.Nr. 3 529 290 06 14; EB; www.Urbans-hof.com) Leiwen/Mosel 2013: Med.yellow color; very strong mineral/flinty/slatey/steely some Mosel valve oil/gout de petrol some R/floral classic Mosel very fragrant nose; very tart/citric/teeth-chattering very mineral/flinty/steely strong gout de petrol/Mosel valve oil slight R/floral/carnations lean/austere flavor; very long slight pineapple/R/floral strong mineral/steely/flinty slight gout de petrol finish; a classic old-timey Mosel as I used to know & love; will easily go out 10, maybe 20 yrs; a steal at $18.00 (SFW&S)
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A wee BloodyPulpit:
1. Saw this new wine at Susan's on Fri & thought I'd try it. It was a label I hadn't seen before, w/ the "NikWeis" strongly featured front & centre. It is, in fact, the old St.Urbans-hof black label w/ the crest that I'm familiar with, but now updated and not as old-timey in looks. Same wnry/new spiffy label. Alte reben=old vines.
I was mightly impressed by this wines. It was a classic old-timey Mosel Riesling the likes of which you don't see so often anymore. It almost brought tears to my eyes.
Tom

[David M. Bueker]

Lots of updated labels across Germany these days. I am getting wistful for gothic script!

Nik Weis has always been a more traditional thinker. When we visited him several years ago we had a long coversation about the meaning of kabinett, and what could (and couldn't) be done to preserve a style of wine that was going by the wayside.

Great, just cellared the same wine but mine is the vintage 2012 Feinherb!!

In the old wayback days of Texas, German wines were the most popular we sold, and we had a great lineup of the great vineyards. But there was also quite a demand for perceptible bargain wines, of course, so I had one supplier who shipped me nothing but containers of liter bottles of Germans, with a pretty heavy preponderance of the then Mosel-Saar-Ruwer. Lotta bereich and grosslagen stuff, and, yes, quite a bit of it was just quaff level.

But amongst all the Zeller and the Bernkastler and the inevitable Piesporter diminutives (hard to realise now how much of a hold Piesport had on the market back then; it was for a long time the darling wine of the Mittel Mosel) one consistent best seller of the whole bunch was the Wiltinger. Great price and good wine; perfect for the Texas climate. And my guys on the floor really liked it.

The Wiltinger, the Johannisberger Erntebringer and Niersteiner were the liters that really flew out the door. They had the ability to please a wide range of people.

In the old wayback days of Texas, German wines were the most popular we sold, and we had a great lineup of the great vineyards. But there was also quite a demand for perceptible bargain wines, of course, so I had one supplier who shipped me nothing but containers of liter bottles of Germans, with a pretty heavy preponderance of the then Mosel-Saar-Ruwer. Lotta bereich and grosslagen stuff, and, yes, quite a bit of it was just quaff level.

But amongst all the Zeller and the Bernkastler and the inevitable Piesporter diminutives (hard to realise now how much of a hold Piesport had on the market back then; it was for a long time the darling wine of the Mittel Mosel) one consistent best seller of the whole bunch was the Wiltinger. Great price and good wine; perfect for the Texas climate. And my guys on the floor really liked it.

The Wiltinger, the Johannisberger Erntebringer and Niersteiner were the liters that really flew out the door. They had the ability to please a wide range of people.

Nice trip down memory lane there, Hoke. One of these days I hope to be old enough to have those kinds of memories!!!
Tom

Nice trip down memory lane there, Hoke. One of these days I hope to be old enough to have those kinds of memories!!!
Tom

By the time you are, you won't be able to remember any of it anyway, my fellow geezer.

Blathering on, I've read quite a bit of opining lately on why riesling will never be in the same ranks as other varieties like chardonnay. The usual suggestion is that it's too light/not enough body, perceived as being sweet (and often has noticeable RS), and is texturally "thin" in the mouth.

I disagree, those early experiences---we sold a Kansas colloquialism of German wines back in the 1970s and 1980s until the domestic market took all that business over---convinced me that those Germans were the perfect "gateway drug" to lead people into wine and allow them to begin developing a broader range of tastes. They were simply satisfying. Yes many were cushioned by sugar but that's no sin if it makes the wine more palatable (I'm becoming this elite as I grow older, I find). And the thing was, most of those Germans were low alcohol, thus more pleasant to drink for many people, and allowing you to drink more without getting blotto.

As I have said before, Germany rieslings are a very hard sell to those who just want a bottle for sipping or to go with dinner etc. I always try to handsell other alternatives...Canada, Alsace but am told " we will try next time we are in".

Lots of updated labels across Germany these days. I am getting wistful for gothic script!

Nik Weis has always been a more traditional thinker. When we visited him several years ago we had a long coversation about the meaning of kabinett, and what could (and couldn't) be done to preserve a style of wine that was going by the wayside.

Just purchased 2 more bottles of the 2012 vintage and have it chilling down as I speak. Well one bottle for now .