WTN: Recent wines + question on Heymann Löwenstein

2004 Schubert Estate Shiraz Goose-yard Block (Australia, South Australia, Barossa, Barossa Valley)
More or less a deep black color and the nose shows just what you would expect. Black pepper, dark fruit, flint
almost smoky. There is oak both on the nose and palate but not overwhelmingly much. Rich and round flavors
concentrated but not over the the top. Some heat from the alcohol on the finish and a long aftertaste.
I'm no big fan of Oz Shiraz in general but this is great stuff.

Serge Horiot Sève (Champagne)
This a single vineyard Rosé des Riceys, a NV but it is in fact a 2004 made from two vineyards. 100% Pinot Noir
made according to the Saignée method. Very vinous and the Pinot character definitely shows and shines through.
Fresh and yeasty with light red fruit, very elegant and easy to drink. Different from other roséchampagnes I've
had. Young but IMO this is the time to drink it. I can't see it getting any better.

I also had a bottle of Bollinger Special Cuvée that was much better than I remembered it to be. Very fresh and floral.

2006 Weingut Keller Riesling Trocken(Germany, Rheinhessen)
Somewhat disappointing, very light with citrus and floral notes. But the palate was not very exciting, elegant to
the point of boring could be one description. No finish to speak of either, not bad but not very good. Won't buy again.

2001 Delas Frères Crozes-Hermitage Les Launes(France, Rhône, Northern Rhône, Crozes-Hermitage)
Advanced bricking(at least for it's age). At first a very perfumed scent of lilac, sweet and lovely, after a few minutes though
it has been replaced by tart cherries and olives. Fully mature palate, resolved tannin and only some fruit left.
Perhaps a bit too acidic but should be nice with food, still life in it but drink up soon.

1997 Fattoria di Felsina Berardenga Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia(Italy, Tuscany, Chianti, Chianti Classico)
Ruby red almost purple color, very little bricking. Spices on the nose, cinnamon and perhaps juniper.
Very aromatic and very big. I later picked up herbs, chocolate and red fruits.
The palate is very silky and refined, there's also an acid backbone to keep the wine in balance.
Once again red fruits and also tobacco. Some tannin left, nice finish and a long aftertaste.
Should hold up for a few more years without any problems. Great wine!

2002 Weingut Heymann-Löwenstein Kirchberg Riesling QbA erste Lage (Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer)
Golden color, more developed than I would have thought. Wet rocks, peaches and flowers on the nose. Really beautiful I could be
happy jut smelling this wine. When I taste it's clear this wine is close to full maturity, somewhat surprising.
Rich with fruit, mineral (diesel) and it's thick and oily. Not much acidity left and that is a shame because for my
palate it could have used some freshness. But it is still a very good wine, the aftertaste seems to linger forever.

If anyone reading this has experience with older bottles of Heymann-Löwenstein, please feel free to comment this note. Is this bottle more mature than it should be, or does this seem to be a normal exampel of this wine? I have some bottles of Roth Lay and Blaufusser Lay from the same vintage and I'm curious what to expect.

2002 Domaine Tollot-Beaut Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru Champ-Chevrey (France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Savigny-lès-Beaune 1er Cru)
A very light color, spices and orange peel on the nose together with unripe strawberries. This echoes in the palate
alongside acid and tannin. A nice bottle of maturing (but not mature) burgundy. A previous bottle drunk a few months
ago was decanted for an hour or so-this was more or less opened and poured- was more complex and softer on the palate.

Daniel,

the 02 "Kirchberg" has a drinking-window until 2009. In comparison the "Roth-Lay" has a drinking-window until 2015 and is a outstanding wine.
The 02 Kirchberg is fine, but not oustanding. The 02 "Blaufüßer Lay" is also fine with the same drinking window like Kirchberg.

"Roth-Lay" rocks! 04 + 05 are breathtaking. I tasted also old vintages from Roth-Lay at a Heymann-Löwenstein-Vertical, only handwritten notes, not at my blog.

Here are some TNs, go for the section MOSEL

http://berlinkitchen.com/berlinkitchen/Wine.html

Thank you Martin, just what I was looking for.

Martin,

On the subject of Heymann Löwenstein, I am curious to know how his 2001s are now showing. I have located 2 bottles each of L, B and R 2001 in my cellar(I thought I had more; my son must have taken a dip). I opened one of these (I forget which) early on and found it untypical of Mosel, fat, lacking in brightness and a bit boring. The Belgian importer advised me to hang on and all will be well; up to now I have not touched any more. What do you think?

Tim,

fantastic portfolio in 2001. Blaufüßer Lay and Laubach are terrific with drinking-window 2010+. Roth-Lay is fine with drinking-window 2008+

The "Roth-Lay" is not such good in 2001 and you should drink it. It seems you have opened the Roth-Lay a few years ago. But I would open each 1 bottle and make a little tasting. It is always very educational to drink the different parcels side by side.

P.S. In general, these Rieslings from Heymann-Löwenstein made before 2003 are always quite opulent and excotic. Starting with 2004 the wines were made more slim. Only "Röttgen" is always also in 04+05 a bomb, but despite the fact that I am a hard-core dry mineral Riesling-aficionado I like the demi-sec "Röttgen" very much.

Here comes a little story, last year David Schildknecht/WA visited me in Berlin/Germany and we made a Riesling-Tasting. I served a 2005 Roth-Lay and this wine was such good that the attanding wine-dealer Tino Seiwert from pinard-de-picard bought all bottles he could find in Berlin. Here are the notes of this tasting:

http://berlinkitchen.com/berlinkitchen/BerlinKitchen/Entries/2007/4/14_David_Schildknecht_-_Tasting_I.html

Since Reinhard Löwenstein was the first great winemaker to treat the wines rather oxidative in 1991 we might not yet fully understand how these develop.

For me he is not only one of the best but also one of the most interesting German winemakers. Every single vintage and wine is different since he is a non recipe winemaker that focus on harmony and balance and constantly develop his methods and philosophy. Therefore age ability is more unpredictably with his wines than others

His own views are that one should drink his wines younger than other comparably reductive made wines. Generally I find that there has been a great difference. The mid 90s Shieferterrassen (generic mid range Mosel) that for the most part went through malolactic fermentation held up surprisingly well.

My view is that Martins drinking windows are a bit long for me but they are a very good general recommendation. With time his wines develop a nutty complex taste with strong mineral flavors that one either finds a bit provocative or loves. Therefore it a very personal opinion on when to drink his wines.

I also agree on Martins assessment of his 2001, so Tim no hurry the Uhlen wines (these are all from Uhlen) are his most long lived and they actually needs a lot of time.

Best
Fredrik Svensson, Luxembourg

[David M. Bueker]

This is a very interesting discussion for me, as I have some bottles of the 2002 "Roth-Lay" and one of the 2005s (not sure which one - will post label details later). I may have to open a 2002 Roth-Lay this week.

Fredrik-I am curious what are your preferences in Mosel Riesling. Are you a fan of "traditional" sweeter wines, or are you more a fan of the newer styles of Heymann Löwenstein and Van Volxem?

I really love them all. I see no reason why not love both Löwenstein and Karthäuserhof even if they are very different in style.

For me the producers that expresses terroir, harmony, personality and generally technical quality are the once I like most. I find both the above excellent in all these aspects.

At the moment my personal ranking of the world famous (not complete) is this:
***
J. J. Prüm
Karthäuserhof
Heymann- Löwenstein
Egon Müller

**
Daniel Vollenweider
Dr Loosen

*
Clüsserat- Eifel
Fritz Haag
Grans Fassian
Marcus Molitor
Reichgraf von Kesselstatt.
Selbach Oster

Best
Fredrik Svensson, Luxembourg

[David M. Bueker]

Fredrik,

A very interesting list. I'm surprised by how high Vollenweider is just because of his very short track record. I love the wines as well, and I hope to see him work with a piece of more famous land just so I can do a comparison with other producers. Since he makes the only Wolfer Goldgrube wines I have ever seen I have a hard time comparing his style and results with other producers.

Dr. Loosen is a producer I have never been fond of. I like the Pralat Auslese GK wines, but their other wines do not move me. I tend to find them too soft, even in more acidic vintages.

Selbach-Oster is an interesting case, as until very recently I would not rank them too high. But from 2001 to now the wines are much more exciting to me.

I agree on Selbach Oster, they have a long time been over rated by most critics. I tend to still be unimpressed by the lower prädikats while the Auslese and above really impress me often, even from the 90s.

Best
Fredrik Svensson, Luxembourg

[David M. Bueker]

I agree on Selbach Oster, they have a long time been over rated by most critics. I tend to still be unimpressed by the lower prädikats while the Auslese and above really impress me often, even from the 90s.

I do love their auslese Rieslings. Back in early 2003 I did a vertical of the Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Auslese with the 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995 and 2001. They were all amazing wines. The new Schmitt and Rotlay selections are stunning though.

I actually like their Zeltinger Himmelreich Riesling Kabinett Halbtrocken quite a lot. It's inexpensive and very enjoyable with food.

I too have some bottles of the 02 Uhlen Roth Lay at home, never yet tasted. Have not got much experience of H-L with age; the following modest note on the base wine is from three weeks ago. I have a bottle each of the 'Blauem Shiefe' and 'Stolxenberg' wines from 01 as well, think I will get into them sooner rather than later. But what of the 01 Rottgen Auslese, which I'm also sitting on...?

2001 Heymann-Lowenstein ‘Shieferterrassen’ QbA 05-02 (Mosel) [cork, 12.5%, €10]
A bottle we shlepped back from the CD four years ago and opened on my wife’s birthday, this is the winery’s entry effort, soured from vineyards across the lower Mosel around Winningen, where Lowenstein is based. Lemon, verging on gold in colour, yet still with a flash of green. The nose is quite aged, with aromas of flour and apple. The palate is barely off-dry, quite powerful – medium-bodied even. Developed Riesling fruits with just a touch of slate (all those terraces!), and a nice even palate, maintaining some presence right to the back palate. There’s still a little acid holding it together, but I wouldn’t hold it much longer, however good the reputation of the vintage.

cheers,
Graeme

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If anyone reading this has experience with older bottles of Heymann-Löwenstein, please feel free to comment this note. Is this bottle more mature than it should be, or does this seem to be a normal example of this wine? I have some bottles of Roth Lay and Blaufusser Lay from the same vintage and I'm curious what to expect.

Hej Daniel!
I don't have that much experience in the wines from Heymann-Löwenstein, but we happened to have a bottle of 1999 Winniger Röttgen QbA at a tasting last Sunday. It had a deep,very charming, quite flowery and developed Riesling bouquet with a slight whiff of bitter almonds. Almost dry, medium bodied and with a little bitterness. Not at all charming like the nose. Almost fiery aftertaste (12% AbV). More a wine for food than thought. Clearly a classy wine, but maybe lacking a bit in finesse, but then again, that might never have been the intention of the winemaker... I wouldn't expect this wine to gain much from any longer storage.

Fridens, Anders

Thank you all for the input, it has been most interersting and helpful.