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WTN: 2001 Trockens from August Kesseler

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Andrew Bair

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WTN: 2001 Trockens from August Kesseler

by Andrew Bair » Mon May 20, 2013 7:10 pm

This was an interesting comparison of two somewhat older dry Rieslings from the same producer (Kesseler) and vintage (2001). As you can see, I preferred the Roseneck, but tend to usually prefer that site over the Schloßberg, which is a very good vineyard in its own right.

2001 August Kesseler Rüdesheimer Berg Roseneck Riesling Spätlese Trocken
Limestone/petrol/floral/peppery nose. Full, ripe, round, bone dry; well balanced, with good underlying acidity. Quite mineral, with notes of white peaches, red plums, hay, and honey. Needs about an hour or more to really open up. Excellent.
It's worth noting that Kesseler made a Großes Gewächs from Roseneck in 2001 (I'm not sure about Schloßberg?), so this supposedly wasn't his top dry Riesling from that site. It could easily have passed for GG quality in my book - I've had a lot of less compelling GGs.

2001 August Kesseler Rüdesheimer Berg Schloßberg Riesling Spätlese Trocken
Toasted corn/lightly mineral/stone fruit nose. Full, round, juicier, softer, bone dry, well balanced, with moderate acidity; not as structured as the Roseneck, but more approachable. Moderately mineral, with notes of apples, apricots, plums, white pepper, hay, and chalk. Somewhat dusty multigrain note on the finish. Very good/excellent.

Finally, I don't understand why, but I have not found many post-2004 wines from Kesseler in the Boston area, aside from the basic estate Riesling (mediocre in my opinion, even for the QPR), and the entry-level Pinot Noir (a solid wine). This is strange given that they are distributed by Vineyard Brands, which is quite active in Massachusetts.
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David M. Bueker

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Re: WTN: 2001 Trockens from August Kesseler

by David M. Bueker » Tue May 21, 2013 7:45 am

Not sure what has happened with Kesseler distribution. I used to be able to buy them as well.

As for the wines, thank you for the notes. I used to own both wines, but drank them quite a while back.

Roseneck is the superior site for dry wines to my way of thinking. Schlossberg gets a bit ripe and blowsy, and with its proximity to the river tends to pick up botrytis notes. I love Schlossberg for regular sweet spatlese though.

In the same basic area, Johannes Leitz produces a great dry wine from the Rudesheimer Berg Rottland. That's an even better site for dry riesling than the Roseneck IMO.
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Bill Hooper

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Re: WTN: 2001 Trockens from August Kesseler

by Bill Hooper » Wed May 22, 2013 4:03 pm

i think that what happened was that VB had been on the lookout for a German producer to round out the portfolio and Kesseler had, at the time, pretty good representation in the US. The problem with a lot of importers is that they don't know how to 'market' German wine. Especially if it isn't a focus of the book. The French/Italian (and in this case South African) knowing sales reps have no idea about Germany. Hence no distribution. VB, for as many good Burgundy/Rhone/SA houses as they represent, are more likely to focus on volume than most any German producer can provide.
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Re: WTN: 2001 Trockens from August Kesseler

by Andrew Bair » Wed Jun 26, 2013 9:39 pm

David M. Bueker wrote:Not sure what has happened with Kesseler distribution. I used to be able to buy them as well.

As for the wines, thank you for the notes. I used to own both wines, but drank them quite a while back.

Roseneck is the superior site for dry wines to my way of thinking. Schlossberg gets a bit ripe and blowsy, and with its proximity to the river tends to pick up botrytis notes. I love Schlossberg for regular sweet spatlese though.

In the same basic area, Johannes Leitz produces a great dry wine from the Rudesheimer Berg Rottland. That's an even better site for dry riesling than the Roseneck IMO.


David - I just had the 2010 Leitz Rottland Hinterhaus this weekend, and it is definitely an impressive dry Riesling:

2010 Leitz Rüdesheimer Berg Rottland Riesling Trocken Hinterhaus
Comparatively light mineral nose. Full, round, strongly mineral, saline, lightly floral, with flavors of lemon oil, peaches, pears, herbs, and green spice. Fresh, well blanced, with tangy acidity. Excellent.

That being said, I have yet to try any of Leitz' Trockens from Schlossberg or Roseneck. Certainly, the Roseneck would be fun to try sometime. The Kaisersteinfels Trocken was impressive in 2007, but I haven't found any other vintages yet. The only previous Leitz Rottland that I have had was a 2005 that seemed to have been exposed to excessive heat at some point.
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Re: WTN: 2001 Trockens from August Kesseler

by Bob Parsons Alberta » Thu Jun 27, 2013 4:28 am

August Kesseler rang a bell here so I checked. Only these two available, slim pickings eh>


2008 August Kesseler Spatburgunder Pinot "N" (Rheingau, Germany)
Wine - Red $37.99 (750mL)

2009 August Kesseler Riesling "R" Kabinett (Rheingau, Germany)
Wine - White $22.99 (750mL)

Must check to see which Leitz wines I have in the cellar here at home.

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