Arguably the best tasting seminar I attended at Vinexpo was this seminar presented by Jeannie Cho Lee, a wine journalist. This was a tasting of 2 Auslese, 3 Beerenauslese, 2 Eiswein and 2 Trockenbeerenauslese. I will include figures on alcohol, residual sugar and acidity.
I didn't spit any of the wines at this tasting. I drank them all.
Juliusspital Iphofer Julius-Echter-berg Riesling Auslese Franken 2005 - 10% abv, 89.1g/l rs, 7.7 g/l acidity. Relatively simple. Green apples on the nose and in the mouth.
Schloss Reinhartshausen Erbacher Schlossberg Riesling Auslese Rheingau 2003 - 8.5% abv, 84.3 g/l rs, 8 g/l acidity. Gewurztraminer-like nose of rose and lychee. Deep flavor but rather light mouthfeel. Red apples this time. Good complexity.
Karl Pfaffmann Walsheimer Silberberg Riesling Beerenauslese Pfalz 2003 - 8.9% abv, 160.9 g/l rs, 8.1 g/l acidity. Orange nose. Candied peel flavors. Very finely balanced wine with a weightiness in the mouth.
Burgerspital zum heiligen Geist Wurzburger Stein Riesling Beerenauslese Franken 2003 - 10.7% abv, 147 g/l rs, 8.4 g/l acidity. Brown sugar notes. Lighter than the previous wine. Not heavy. Very easy to drink.
Wein und Sektgut Molitor Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Beerenauslese MSR 2003 - 7% abv, 170 g/l rs, 6.3 g/l acidity. Some herbal notes on the nose. Brown sugar. Very lush with yellow tropical fruits primarily mango and pineapple. A little peach as well. Outstanding stuff!
Weingut Werner Anselmann Edesheimer Ordensgut Riesling Eiswein Pfalz 2005 - 8.1% abv, 179.3 g/l rs, 10.2 g/l acidity. Very spicy ( cinnamon, cloves, etc.). Unusual nose very difficult to describe. Grape juice. Dried apple, some caramel also. I can't decide if I like this or not.
Weingut Max Ferd. Richter Mulheimer Helenenkloster Riesling Eiswein MSR 2004 - 9% abv, 221.8 g/l rs, 14.2 g/l acidity. Rubber on the nose. Intensely sweet and weighty. Great complexity. Excellent balance and impossibly long finish. Outstanding stuff!
Weingut August Perl Bopparder Hamm Feuerlay Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese Mittelrhein 2003 - 8.4% abv, 247 g/l rs, 7.6 g/l acidity. Orange and honey nose. Sweet spices in the mouth with orange flavors as well. So smooth and balanced; this is quite easy to drink. Superb!
Weingut Robert Weil Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese Rheingau 2005 - 6.5% abv, 335 g/l rs (!), 12.6 g/l acidity. Strange, slightly musty, tomatoey nose. Now THAT is sweet! Very thick but again the balance is so fine it's easy to drink. Nectar, honey, ripe fruits, the list goes on and on. Lush, silky mouthfeel with another impossibly long finish. This tasting note hardly does justice to the wine. Just incredible stuff!
As I mentioned at the beginning, perhaps the best seminar I attended at Vinexpo. The Weil alone was probably worth the trip to Hong Kong from Manila!