2001 Darting Ungsteiner Herrenberg Riesling Spatlese

[wondersofwine]

Pfalz, Germany
A.P. #5160 346 028 02
9% alcohol

I thought I had already posted this but didn't find it with a search. Please forgive if it's a duplicate.

Medium gold color. Honeysuckle nose. Pear and honey on the palate with some hints of marmalade. Brix beyond Spatlese level?
Seemed flat on Thanksgiving just after opening. Much more interesting five days later after being corked and refrigerated.
Leaves a lip-licking impression. With the relatively low alcohol it flows merrily down the stream (er, throat). One week after it was first opened I found more peach or nectarine notes than pear with the honey still present.
Purchased on sale at Macarthur's Beverages (Bassin's), Washington, DC. Might pair nicely with marzipan cookies or German 'S' cookies flavored with mace.

[TheEngineer]

I've done some purchases with them as well (for mailing). They do a good job oc packing and only sending during cool season.

[brappy]

Jane,

You really got this German wine thing down. I've half heartedly(sp) tried, but knowing what to try is the hard part. I've tried several wines from different regions in Germany including Alsace, but don't know the quality of the producers.

You used to live there, so I'm guessing you not only know the quality producers but also the great values. I'm wondering if you wouldn't mind sharing some of your knowledge in this area. I would certainly be in your debt.

Thanks in advance,

mark

[wondersofwine]

Thanks for the compliment and your confidence in me. I'm not as much an expert as David Bueker over on WLDG but I do know more about German wines than say Bordeaux or Rhone or South America, etc. I will try to get some thoughts together and reply on this thread before the end of the week. I have some index cards at home on which I started my note taking and will consult them as well. (And you do know Alsace is part of France currently although it has ricocheted between Germany and France during wars?)

[brappy]

Thank you and yes, I know where Alsace is. I just wanted to include it because of typicity.

[Innkeeper]

Conventional wisdom has it that if you took three Riesling Kabinetts from the three principal German districts, the M-S-R would be driest, followed by Rheingau, with Rheinhessen being the sweetest. In reality this all varies from producer to producer, vineyard to vineyard, row in vineyard to row in vineyard; as well as to the climate in given year, and many other factors.

When we lived in Sembach just north of Kaiserslautern we drove up to Oppenheim in Rheinhessen just south of Nierstein one Saturday. We drove down the main drag of town and stopped by a house that had wine bottles in the windows. We knocked on the door which opened to the Heinrich Noll Weinbau. Heinrich, his wife, and a son who was studying to become a doctor became good friends. Every year Heinrich made twelve wines from eight Oppenheim vineyards. They were all planted with Riesling only. He owned anywhere from two to six or eight rows in the vineyards, sometimes at opposite ends. This is how he made twelve distinctive wines. They ranged from an almost bone dry Troken to a very rich but not too sweet Spatlese. Each vineyard had colorful names such as Herronweiler, which means “frog well.” This was in the ’66 to ’68 timeframe and without getting into a big discussion on exchange rates and such, let me just say that the wines ranged in price from $.65 to $1.50.

These wines provided all of our vinous needs for two years. We even got into the then German practice of drinking the richest white wine (the $1.50 Herronweiler Spatlese) with steak! So, whenever I hear someone say “Rheinhessen! Yuk! They are too sweet for me;” I can only look back on those days and remember the full range of Reislings our old friend Heinrich made.

Unfortunately the Heinrich Noll Weinbau is no more. I’ve unsuccessfully tried to track them down after having briefly been in touch with them for a few years after returning stateside. My guess is that the old folks died, and Doctor Noll sold the rows to one or more of his dad’s colleagues. And as I sit here typing this, a big tear is running down.

[brappy]

That's a very nice story IK. Well told!

And....... the reason I want to know the good producers and what they're best at. It's as confusing as Burgundy.