Grand Cru Tasting Group (Perth) – Rieslings of the World

[Waiters Friend]

G’day

Last night’s tasting was promoted as Rieslings of the World. Any style, vintage and wine region from anywhere around the world. Fortunately, many people forgot that Australia is also part of the world, and we therefore tasted a range of wines from New Zealand, Germany, Austria and France as well as a couple of Aussies.

We tasted 13 wines in total, masked, with only the vintage known. As usual, we tasted from youngest to oldest, and the notes below reflect the comments from the assembled company.

Weingut Robert Weil 2021 (Rheingau, Germany, 12% alc) Pale straw in colour. The nose was restrained to start with, showing lemon, talc, slate, grass, oyster shell, white stone fruit and Pink Lady apple. The palate displayed more stone fruits and apple, with orange zest and pith. Racy acid and a good length.

Joh Jos Prum Wehlener Sonnenhur Spatlese 2021 (Mosel Germany, 7% alc): Pale yellow in colour. Honey and beeswax on the nose, along with chamomile, florals, lychee, pineapple, candied citrus and musk. The cordial-like and slightly buttery palate includes orange, lemon, marzipan and tropical fruits. Its semi-sweet, with the acid masking some of the residual sugar, and the result is very refreshing. Well regarded by the group.

Koyama Tussock Terrace Vineyard 2019 (Waipara Valley, NZ, 12% alc). Pale straw in colour. Hint of kero on the nose, followed by moderate lime, lemon barley, orange blossom and a saline character. There’s more of a citrus tang on the palate (lime and mandarin), and there’s also some chalkiness and minerality. A tart finish, and some tasters considered whether the wine is going through a dumb phase.

Schafer-Frohlich Hallenberg Vineyard GG 2019 (Nahe, Germany, 13% alc). Straw colour. Surprising nose of boiled fruit lollies, passionfruit, and green mango. The palate has slate and chalk alongside tangy lime, and acid is very high. The wine is powerful, with considerable fruit weight, and a long finish. Well balanced and well regarded.

Diel Nahe Steiner 2018 (Nahe, Germany, 13% alc). Yellow colour. Initial kero on the nose, with smoke and salinity. Apple blossom, cider and nectarine also. There’s more cider / red apple on the herbal palate, with some marmalade. Acid appears only moderate and its slightly tart. Also well regarded by the group.

Sipp Mack Rosacker Vineyard Grand Cru 2016 (Alsace, France, 12.5% alc). Medium yellow in colour. The nose was initially sweaty, which blew off to reveal toffee, caramel and a reminder of sherry flor. This persists through the palate, with bruised apple pie and buttermilk. Despite the flor, there’s a touch of residual sugar. We’re not sure if the wine was made deliberately oxidative or it has just aged.

Bellarmine Select 2016 (Pemberton, Western Australia, 7.5% alc). Yellow gold in colour. The nose shows lemon-lime cordial with florals and honey. The palate is even more concentrated with cordial, honeydew melon and marmalade. There’s considerable sweetness (around 60g/L), and it walks the line between maturity and youthfulness. Most tasters considered this was a German Riesling. In fairness, the vineyard was established in 2000 by a German family. Well regarded by the group.

Dr Loosen Wehlener Sonnenhur Kabinett 2014 (Mosel, Germany, 12.5% alc) Yellow in colour. There’s vibrant citrus and apple on the nose, with honeysuckle, minerality and wet pebbles. The palate is high acid and clean, with tangy lemon/lime, tangerine, and Pink Lady apples. Excellent length, and highly regarded by the group.

Weingut Andreas Liable Achat 2014 (Durbach, Germany, 12.5%). Full gold in colour. Green papaya, butter menthol and caramel on the nose. The palate is oxidised and flat, but we can see the remains of what might have been a very good wine. A dud bottle, and disappointing.

Salomon Neidi Osterreich 2013 (Austria, 11.5% alc). Yellow in colour. Lemon and talc on the nose, with hints of rosewater, honey and grapefruit. It’s tangy with high acid, more honey and grapefruit, green apple and marzipan / almond. It’s got some grip and is slightly tart.

Petaluma Hanlin Hill 2010 (Clare Valley, South Australia, 13.5% alc). Yellow in colour. Lemon, honey, caramel and fino sherry on the nose, indicating development (well, it is 14 years old). There’s more lemon, honey and grapefruit on the palate, with a touch of apple, has similarities to the Salomon, but a softer mouthfeel. Good palate weight and length, and well regarded.

Trevelen Farm 2002 (Great Southern, Western Australia, 11.5% alc). Under screwcap. Yellow gold in colour. Fully developed lime cordial on the nose with a little toffee or nuttiness. There’s lots of lime on the mid to back palate, with toffee apple behind it. Despite its age, there’s plenty of life here, and the development is not fully tertiary.

Trevelen Farm 2001 (Great Southern, Western Australia, 11.5% alc). Under cork. Full gold, with only slight browning. Toffee, burnt orange and mandarin pith on the nose. The palate is fully developed (the difference between screwcap and cork perhaps?) and shows caramel, mandarin peel, honey and marmalade on toast, sherry and a little lanolin. Still eminently drinkable and well regarded.

This was a fascinating tasting, not least because of the spread of vintages and geography. It was also interesting to try two wines from the same vineyard, from different (highly respected) producers, and different level of sweetness.
Wine of the night was the Dr Loosen Wehlener Sonnenhur Kabinett 2014. Many thanks to those that joined us.

Cheers
Allan

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[Waiters Friend]

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[Ian S]

It's good the 4 Aussies were there. Such tastings are often aided by having a familiar reference point, though of those, the Petaluma is the only one I've tasted, and that maybe 2 decades ago!

[Waiters Friend]

It's good the 4 Aussies were there. Such tastings are often aided by having a familiar reference point, though of those, the Petaluma is the only one I've tasted, and that maybe 2 decades ago!

Good observation, Ian, and I hadn't thought of that. The Petaluma would have been the most likely reference (although 14 yeats old!), and the Bellarmine was widely considered to be German (and made in that style). Perhaps a couple more (and younger) Australians would have provided more of a reference - but I'm glad we saw the variety of wines that we did, and not just a series of lime-dominant wines!

Cheers
Allan

[phillisc]

Thanks Allan, yes the Petaluma is the only one I have out of that lot.
Working from home today...an absolute treat, happens about once a year...so am having a 2012 Pikes Merle with some seafood linguine.
Stunning example of a top shelf Aussie Riesling, no hint of kero, beautiful lemony/lime on the palate with acid carrying the way through
Cheers Craig