Weingut Forstmeister Geltz-Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Riesling Spätlese 1993

Friday afternoon down here, all was right in the world.  Curiosity was safely on Mars, the US Women’s Soccer team had won gold, and thanks to a tweet from Jancis, tons of people had checked out the WSET Diploma OCW links I set up.  I couldn’t have wanted anything more, really.  And then I got a message asking why my pages were redirecting to some porn site.  Ugh.  Four hours later, everything was back to normal except for me, still a bit shaken and extremely annoyed with my provider.  Rather than holding on to that, I need to focus on what this blog is about, and that’s reporting on what I’ve been drinking.  And with that I’m going for one of the types of wines most beloved by those in the wine trade, an aged German Riesling, the Weingut Forstmeister Geltz-Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Riesling Spätlese 1993.

Across the industry when you talk with people who are serious about wine, a disproportionate number have a deep-seated love of German Riesling, and with good reason.  They can be things of beauty, ranging from crisp and dry through to luscious, with ageing profiles that can start floral and lifted, transitioning to a delicious petrol.  They can be among the longest lasting wines in the world, made with equal parts artistry and precision.  Even the vineyards themselves are amazing, often on slopes not just too steep for mechanization but even impassable for pickers without the use of ropes and harnesses.  It’s easy to see why people who have tasted and know a little about German Riesling so often love it.

It’s more difficult to explain why that is not a more universally held opinion.  I’d rather not delve into it more than to state the obvious by saying that German wine labels can be more intimidating than most, wine is a fashion-driven industry so what is popular often has little or nothing to do with wine quality, and finally there are a number of misconceptions as to what to expect from contemporary German wine based on wines that were popular in the 1980s.  Suffice it to say that none of those are good reasons why German Riesling can’t be the next big thing, though bear in mind that people in the trade who love it have been saying that for decades.

I’ve written about Rieslings from Clare, Australia and Alsace, France, so the variety is not new to this blog.  While Riesling is certainly grown in many other places in both the Old World and the New, it’s most closely linked with Germany and is thought to have originated in the Rhine.  Within Germany it is the most widely planted grape with just over 20% of all plantings and over a third of all white plantings.  It is believed to be very expressive of the soil on which it’s grown, and is rarely influenced by oak, though often exposed to very old/neutral oak during fermentation.  As I mentioned, it’s made into wines of a wide range of quality levels, alcohol levels and sweetness, as well as being a major component in German sparkling wine, sekt.

This wine is from the Mosel region of Germany, which takes its name and geography from the river.  It stretches from the area where the borders of Germany, France and Luxembourg meet, and travels northeast to where the Mosel feeds into the Rhine river at Koblenz.  (France and Luxembourg also have their own appellations on the river as it winds its way through their respective countries, though then known as Moselle.)  Up until 2007 the area was named additionally for two tributaries of the Mosel, hence the (correct in 1993) Mosel – Saar – Ruwer origin on the label, but that was updated to simply Mosel with six subregions, or districts, and this wine is from the Saar district.

District Saar is best known for struggling to achieve ripeness, which it has been  historically able to do roughly 40% of the time.  When it does, the wines are prized for their lusciousness, kept in line by sharp acidity resulting in a steely quality.  The climate is continental, with warm summers and winters cold enough to allow some production of ice wine.  Wine production is all about specific sites, and the best vines are planted on steep, south facing slopes in order to maximize sunlight on the vines, and hence chances of ripening.  Soils are generally slate.

Since I mentioned German wine labels, this one is worth breaking down.  Across the top is the name of the region (though now changed).  Forstmeister Geltz-Zilliken is the producer, named after Ferdinand Geltz, 19th century Royal Prussian District Forester.  Though his original estate was divided and subdivided subsequently, his daughters and grand daughters (along with their husbands) have carried on the family business, picking up the name Zilliken through marriage in 1947.  Saarburger Rausch is a famous vineyard in the Saar region, just across the river from the town of Saarburg.  Riesling Spätlese refers to the grape and style, with Spätlese meaning literally late harvest, at least a week after the normal harvest date.  Spätlese as a term on its own is used for a semi-sweet style of wine, though it can come with qualifiers for halbtrocken (off-dry) and trocken (dry) styles as well.

This wine is clear and bright, with a medium gold colour and a quick film inside the glass when swirled.  On the nose it’s clean with medium intensity and is fully developed.  There’s a bit of pear, minerals, and many layers of petroleum products from petrol through to motor oil, with a hint of blossom.  On the palate it’s off dry, but not what I think of as a traditional dessert wine.  There’s some sugar, but the wine is structured such that it isn’t the first thing you notice.  It has high acidity, medium body, low alcohol, medium plus flavour intensity, and a medium plus finish.  There are notes of grapefruit, kerosene, a hint of honey, and some pear and blossom tea on the finish.

This is a very good wine, though somewhat rare in these parts.  It’s perfectly balanced, between the sweetness and acidity, and has a complex range of flavours.  While I, along with much of the wine trade, bemoan the fact that wines such as this aren’t more widely appreciated, there is some consolation in the fact that it means they can represent a great value proposition, and given their ageing potential there’s no excuse not to cellar a case or two whenever you can.

Domaine Mittnacht Freres Riesling Les Fossiles 2010

As I type this, there is nothing French on the front page, even if you scroll all the way to the bottom, though I’m sure no one has done that ever.  There is another French wine in the queue, but it’s going to be something of a bear to put together, so instead I’m going with the more straightforward option, a wine I recently had by the glass, the Domaine Mittnacht Freres Riesling Les Fossiles 2010.

Or so I thought.  As is common in many wine growing areas, the family name is not such a good unique identifier.  I started out my research looking at Domain Mittnacht-Klack, which may or may not be from the same family tree, but which is certainly not the same producer.

Instead, Mittnacht Frères was formed in 1963 when two brothers, André and Louis Mittnacht combined their vineyards.  The production is now run by two cousins, Christophe and Marc Mittnacht.  If only the vignerons of Burgundy had been able to do the same under the rule of Napoleon we wouldn’t have to remember two dozen different producers for each little clos within the Nuits-Saint-Georges.  Their vineyards are biodynamic, which seems to be a recurring bugbear in this blog.  They don’t appear to have a website, so apologies as to the paucity of details – the back label on their bottle lists an email address instead.

One of the great things about the Where I’m Drinking page is that I can just zoom into a region and look for the pins indicating producers I’ve featured.  I had a look at Alsace and was somewhat surprised that I’ve only written a proper post about a single producer, The Furst Pinot Blanc.  I think I was somewhat traumatized by our tasting practices when our tutor poured us an off-dry Domaine Zind-Humbrecht Pinot Blanc, which seemed to come from another world and completely put me off Alsace.  I think I guessed Vinho Verde based on the light, sweet taste and bubbles in my glass, but they were due to age, not fermentation.

The basics are that it’s a cool region in the east of France near the border with Germany.  In fact, the area has swapped between German and French governance, and culturally it’s somewhere in the middle.  You’ll often find people there with Germanic surnames but French sounding given names.  The area is defined by the slopes of the Vosges mountain range to the west and the Rhine river to the east.  There are vineyards running up the slopes and along the flats.  While the climate is cool continental, the weather arrives from the west, and the mountains provide a rain shadow, making winters more mild than they would be otherwise.  The slopes, as well as those of the foothills, allow vineyards to be planted in a way that maximizes sunlight for ripening.  Geologically, the area is part of the Rhine Graben, of the Rhine River Valley, which is essentially a rift in the crust where what became the Vosges moved away from what is now the Black Forest to the east.  As a result, the geology of the area is highly varied, with everything from granite, quartz, and sandstone on the upper slopes to clay and calcareous marl on the lower slopes and whatever has washed down on the plains.  There’s also volcanic influences dating back 15 million years.  Really it’s better to talk about the geology specific to a vineyard or at least a village, but unfortunately I don’t have that information with respect to this wine.

With regard to wine and winemaking, the region is well known for a number of reasons.  Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris and Auxerrois Blanc top the league charts in overall plantings, with Pinot Noir being the fifth overall and the most widely planted red grape, but none are more than 25% of the total.  Sylvaner and Pinot Blanc round out the top seven, after which the percentages drop off significantly.  Most wine is made as varietal, and unusually for France, grape varieties are usually indicated on the front label.  Bottles are required to be the tall, shoulderless bottles most commonly associated with Riesling.  The region is covered by an AC for still wine, and there is an Alsace Grand Cru AC though as with all such ratings with any fluidity, it is highly controversial, and in Alsace it is not does not seem to be regarded with the level of respect given to the rankings within the Left Bank or Burgundy.  There is no vin de pays for Alsace, so non AC wines are vin de table.  Most wines are dry, though some retain sweetness stylistically, there are late harvest and botritized wines as well, and even ice wine.  In addition, Cremant d’Alsace is also produced, for which Chardonnay may be used, though it is not permitted in still AC wines.

I’ve written a bit about Riesling when I covered the Pikes Clare Valley Riesling in February, and the only thing I’d like to add is that Alsatian Rieslings are meant to have higher alcohol and than their German counterparts, and more body than Australian versions.  With that, it’s time to look at this Riesling in particular.

In the glass, this wine is clear and bright, pale lemon colour with green highlights. On the nose, it’s clean, developing, with medium intensity.  There are notes of pear, lime, and a little custard.  On the palate it’s dry, with medium plus acidity, medium body, medium minus alcohol, medium plus flavour intensity and notes of lime, almost salty, intense citrus but not an especially specific fruit, maybe grapefruit, with a custard finish and a medium plus length.

This is a good quality wine – neither wanting nor particularly special.  It has good fruit and more body than many Rieslings, but doesn’t lack acidity or intensity.  And as it is one I had by the glass, not an expensive wine, and certainly delivers typicity both as Alsatian and as a Riesling.

Pikes Clare Valley Riesling 2000

In the manner of one in a 12 step program, I’m making the rounds of admitting my past failings and trying to make amends.  This week, it’s Riesling, that noble grape so ignobly ignored by this blog over the last few months.  If I were clever, it would be a German Riesling, and then I could make peace with a country that I’ve so far neglected, but alas not tonight.

So tonight it’s the Pikes Clare Valley Riesling 2000.  We hosted a party this past weekend and while I tried my best to pour non-stop throughout, somehow we ended up with a surplus of three bottles of Riesling, this being the oldest of them.  Funnily enough, I took three bottles out of the cellar last week for a special tasting sometime soon, so before dinner this evening I had a half case of Riesling chilling in the fridge, something I don’t think has ever in my life been the case.

This is a good wine for this column, in that it ticks a lot of boxes.  First, it’s from Clare, which is an area I like.  Also in Australia the Clare Valley and Riesling are like the Hunter Valley and Semillon, or the Barossa Valley and Shiraz.  Second, Pikes is a well known and well respected winery, which balances out my penchant for wanting to write about Georgian Saperavi.  Finally, this is an older bottle, and Riesling is a grape that can age as well as any white, and typically more than most reds.

So I’ll start with the grape, Riesling.  As a wine professional, I have an obligation to claim Riesling is my favourite white when anyone asks (though it’s possible to get away with Grüner Veltliner).  However, to be honest, since no one is reading, it’s not my favourite.  I much prefer a well made Chardonnay or a Rhone white, but in the industry everyone must profess their love of Riesling, and mention that it’s without a doubt going to replace Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay or Pinot Gris/Grigio (whichever is most popular) next summer.

As long as I’ve been interested in wine (which is not as long as most, I’m sure), Riesling has not been the most fashionable white.  It’s certainly noble, and people have been making excellent wine from it forever, but it was in fashion at some point in the recent past before I was in the trade, and it’s not been back since.  Fashion is fickle, and it will likely be back at some point, but for now you can observe that the most prized bottle of Australian Riesling, Grosset’s Polish Hill, will set you back approximately $40, while a similarly prized bottle of Shiraz will likely be in excess of ten times that amount.  Yes, the cost structures for reds versus whites are very different, but still, it’s silly.  However, it does mean that if you aren’t a dedicated follower of fashion, you can get some seriously high quality wine for a good price.

So fashion aside, Riesling is an interesting grape.  It’s typically thin skinned, and produces highly acidic, aromatic white wine.  It’s international, and not just with a single home in the Old World and some colonization in the New.  It’s grown widely in Germany, France, Austria, and Switzerland, as well as throughout the New World.  It does best in cooler climates, and has a preference for slate and sandy clay soils.  It is thought that the wine made from Riesling grapes has a particular ability to express the soil in which the grapes were grown, and as such is typically made into wine with very little exposure to air or oak that would change its character.  Wine made from Riesling grapes can range from bone dry to late harvest, to botrytized, and to even sweeter still ice wine.  Sparkling wine is also made from it.  For a white, it has an almost unmatched capacity to age, going from a zingy fruity young wine to an older wine with distinct petrol or kerosene aromas.

Clare is a wine region about 120km north of Adelaide, and is best known for Riesling.  It is a series of valleys in an elevated pocket of land.  Long warm days and cool nights during the growing season are the norm, with cold winters and little rainfall.  Soils are varied, with both red topsoil over limestone and slate being found in different parcels.  Other areas range from alluvial ground to sandy loams with degraded quartz.  Several producers bottle Rieslings under the names of smaller subregions as the nature of the grape and winemaking allows the differences in the soils to show through.  While Riesling is the grape for which the region is best known, the cool climate and altitude also produces Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon and Semillon.  A mailing-list-only boutique winery, Wendouree, is best known for their reds, and I’m a particular fan of the Malbec they produce as a varietal a few times a decade it seems.

Pikes is a family winery that has roots in South Australia going back to 1878, which is fairly far back for Australia.  The name was first known for brewing beer, and a beer of their name is still made, though I’m not certain that the family has an stake in that business.  The current wine company dates to 1984 when it was established in the Clare Valley.  It is best know for Riesling, though they have a range of about a dozen or so other wines, both red and white.  They produce both this Riesling and a Reserve called “The Merle”.

This wine is a medium gold in colour – nearly 12 years in bottle will do that.  The nose has some lovely kerosene notes, along with some bruised apple and lime.  The palate is zesty, but not quite zingy, if that makes sense.  It has a strongly citrus flavour profile.  Lime is the foremost flavour, with some lemon and a bit of orange blossom along for the ride.  However, despite the citric flavours, it’s not as acidic as they would lead me to expect.  It has a good length and is holding up pretty well, but I don’t think it’s going to improve.  A decent Riesling, but not great, which after twelve years would be a bit of a disappointment.    For me, however, it is a gift I received and then consumed within 48 hours so I enjoyed it.