TN: Schafer-Frohlich Halenberg Spatlese Riesling 2009

[Waiters Friend]

Sealed under cork. 7.5% alcohol. Yellow in colour with gold tinges, and slight spritz - tiny bubbles in the glass - initially, but disappeared after a few swirls.

The nose, while delicate, is at the apple and citrus end of the spectrum. There's Pink Lady apples, and there's a touch of lime cordial. Not sure if there is a touch of botrytis in this.

The palate finds the line between sweetness and acidity, with neither really dominating. Similar fruits (developed) are here too, and the wine is cleansing on the finish.

I don't drink many of these - maybe I should go for more. I especially prefer them with a few years on them - any sharp edges have been rounded off. I think this wine will continue to develop for some years yet.

Cheers
Allan

[Wizz]

Love these wines too Allan, 40% of my cellar is German Riesling. My Schafer Frohlichs dont go back to 09 (I drank them all!) but I agree his Spatlese is sublime. If you can get your hands on his Goldkapsel Spatlese its out-of-this-world good.

[winetastic]

Wizz if you were to pick a top 5 German Riesling producers that are worth checking out, who would they be?

I have really enjoyed a bunch of JJ Prum I picked up at auction over the last year and would like to expand my horizons.

[Waiters Friend]

Wizz if you were to pick a top 5 German Riesling producers that are worth checking out, who would they be?

I have really enjoyed a bunch of JJ Prum I picked up at auction over the last year and would like to expand my horizons.

I concur - I'm keen to learn more too. My diet has included AJ Adam and Dr Loosen so far, but more to explore.

[Wizz]

Wizz if you were to pick a top 5 German Riesling producers that are worth checking out, who would they be?

I have really enjoyed a bunch of JJ Prum I picked up at auction over the last year and would like to expand my horizons.

Well..depends what style you like. If you like JJ Prum, then my top 5 in the off dry to sweet range are (completely Mosel Saar Ruwer centric)
JJ Prum
Willi Schaefer
Schloss Lieser
Schafer Frohlich
Egon Muller

So many good ones find their way into Aus now, someone else could have a completely different top 5 which is just as good as this list.

For dry wines the list looks different - the Mosel doesn't do the dry wines quite so well, This could work:
Keller
Robert Wiel
Donnhoff
Wittmann
Heymann Lowenstein

hope this is some help,

Andrew

[Wizz]

Wizz if you were to pick a top 5 German Riesling producers that are worth checking out, who would they be?

I have really enjoyed a bunch of JJ Prum I picked up at auction over the last year and would like to expand my horizons.

I concur - I'm keen to learn more too. My diet has included AJ Adam and Dr Loosen so far, but more to explore.

AJ Adam has fallen off my radar a bit as Andreas seems to make huge wines, all very powerful and high residual sugar for their pradikat levels.

Nothing wrong with Dr loosen, they just don't seem to be as exciting as some others. Howewver - their Erdener Pralat wines are special, its an extraordinary site, right next to the more famous Urziger Wurzgarten which I think might have been affected by the bridge? When we visited in 2010 the bridge wasn't there yet.

[winetastic]

Wizz if you were to pick a top 5 German Riesling producers that are worth checking out, who would they be?

I have really enjoyed a bunch of JJ Prum I picked up at auction over the last year and would like to expand my horizons.

Well..depends what style you like. If you like JJ Prum, then my top 5 in the off dry to sweet range are (completely Mosel Saar Ruwer centric)
JJ Prum
Willi Schaefer
Schloss Lieser
Schafer Frohlich
Egon Muller

So many good ones find their way into Aus now, someone else could have a completely different top 5 which is just as good as this list.

For dry wines the list looks different - the Mosel doesn't do the dry wines quite so well, This could work:
Keller
Robert Wiel
Donnhoff
Wittmann
Heymann Lowenstein

hope this is some help,

Andrew

Thanks Andrew, will attempt to hunt some of these down.

[scribbler]

I would add
Zilliken &
Grunhaus

I cannot afford Egon Muller, but reputation is huge.

And a wonderful (free) resource is Mosel Fine wines, with voluminous reviews every few months...

[Waiters Friend]

I note that our generous Forum host, Gavin, offers a couple of German Rieslings - including the Dr Loosen dry. I found Max Allen's description quite apt ..... "almost Australian enough in style (not too acid-driven, a little higher in alcohol at 11.5 per cent) to appeal to drinkers brought up on the dry Rieslings of Clare, Eden Valley or the Great Southern". I suppose he's right, and that might help explain my initial interest in German Rieslings. Keen to explore more of the lower alcohol style, however.

Thanks for the suggestions!

[Wizz]

I would add
Zilliken &
Grunhaus

I cannot afford Egon Muller, but reputation is huge.

And a wonderful (free) resource is Mosel Fine wines, with voluminous reviews every few months...

Zilliken and Grunhaus could easily be in that list I agree. And yes Egon Muller is harder to get than Prum and poisonously dear, almost in Keller territory. But sublime...

I also have a soft spot for Fritz Haag. Love the Brauneberger Juffer vineyard

And Donnhoff really deserves a mention although they seem harder to get these days.

[winetastic]

I would add
Zilliken &
Grunhaus

Do these tend to be dry, off-dry or on the sweeter end of the spectrum?

[scribbler]

Zilliken and Grunhaus are at the sweeter end (what I mostly buy from Germany); but everyone makes trocken, "feinherb" etc
how could I have forgoten Fritz Haag

[Waiters Friend]

And Donnhoff really deserves a mention although they seem harder to get these days.[/quote]


This is one of the wines that Gavin offers for sale.

[Wizz]

And Donnhoff really deserves a mention although they seem harder to get these days.

This is one of the wines that Gavin offers for sale.[/quote]

Sadly - only the QbA level wine available. Their dry wine, kabinett and then everything up to Auslese Goldkapsel and even Eiswein are usually good and can be thrilling, and in particular the GG level dry wines don't get the acclaim they deserve. I'm not sure how much of the sweeter styles Cellarhand bring in any more though.

The Hermannsholle vineyard is special.

[Gavin Trott]

And Donnhoff really deserves a mention although they seem harder to get these days.

This is one of the wines that Gavin offers for sale.[/quote]

There are so so many more that I can get, almost anything really, its more what I list on the web site etc, so no-one ever be afraid to contact me, and ask!

If I can, I will, if I can't, I'll let you know!

Keller, almost all of those mentioned, in varying quantities. Also superb smaller producers, like Kühling-Gillot et al... what's available is huge ... what to 'list' on a web site much smaller and more 'selected'.

FWIW
.

[Mark Carrington]

Top five? Tricky.
QMP
JJ Prüm (top).
Vollenweider*
AJ Adam
Schaefer
Karthäuserhofberg

Dry
Keller (top)
P Lauer ^
Donnhoff*
Zeter (incl non-Riesling)
Salwey (non-Riesling).
* Exemplary in both styles. As is Schäfer-Frohlich, where I enjoyed an excellent visit last year.
Loosen continues to disappoint, I avoid Maximim Grunhauser, though it’s supposedly back on form. Egon Muller is now far too pricey.
There are several more that merit following, of course.