WTN: The value of kabinett ('98 Merkelbach Riesling)

[David M. Bueker]

It's finally spring. The weather nearly hit 70 F today. The Masters is on. Birds are coming right up to the house at the bird bath. The scent of the air is fresh and clean with none of the heaviness of summer or the roasted aromas of fall.

I opened a 1998 Merkelbach Urziger Wurzgarten Riesling Kabinett. This was practically a forgotten bottle, but time has been good to the wine. The high acid of 1998 has kept it fresh, the color is still a very pale yellow and the aromas are like spring flowers and apples gliding down a stream bed of polished stones. There's lemon curd and apple on the plate, and a salty minerality on the finish that wakes up the palate and commands the next sip. A touch of creaminess is like the hint of warmth in a spring breeze.

Only a true kabinett can do this.

It's finally spring. The weather nearly hit 70 F today. The Masters is on. Birds are coming right up to the house at the bird bath. The scent of the air is fresh and clean with none of the heaviness of summer or the roasted aromas of fall.

I opened a 1998 Merkelbach Urziger Wurzgarten Riesling Kabinett. This was practically a forgotten bottle, but time has been good to the wine. The high acid of 1998 has kept it fresh, the color is still a very pale yellow and the aromas are like spring flowers and apples gliding down a stream bed of polished stones. There's lemon curd and apple on the plate, and a salty minerality on the finish that wakes up the palate and commands the next sip. A touch of creaminess is like the hint of warmth in a spring breeze.

Only a true kabinett can do this.

Yes, well... as it pertains to our other discussion, the Würzgarten has more potential than almost any great vineyard in the Mittel Mosel for making higher Oechsle wines. Vintage is a strong influence, but could this not be another Spätlese in disguise? I'm just asking!

-Bill

I just had my first Merkelbach wine this year, I found 3 bottles of 2006 Urziger Wurzgarten Spatlese in Portland. I had never seen or heard of this producer before. I did my usual, buy three, drink one and stash two. I opened the first bottle in February and now I don't know how long I can hold out to taste another one! Oh so spicy and piquant, for $20.00 USD how could I go wrong?

Michael

[David M. Bueker]

Bill,

Are you actually familiar with Merkelbach? They are rather old school, and when they label something kabinett (especially before the rampant ripeness of the new millenium) they mean kabinett. While I don't doubt that this wine could have been close to a spatlese level it probably did not reach that tier or else they would have bottled it as such. The Merkelbachs have only recently come to the declassifcation game because they had no other choice to obtain kabinett (and in some years like 2005 released no kabinett at all).

As for the Urziger Wurzgarten and its propensity for ripeness I would challenge your assertion, as there are plenty of other sites that routinely give riper/richer wines (e.g. the nearby Erdener Pralat, Bernkasteler Doctor, Zeltinger Sonnenuhr (parts), etc.). I do think that the specific wines that the Wurzgarten gives tend to taste richer, but that's more a function of the expression of Riesling grown there rather than sheer ripeness.

[David M. Bueker]

Michael,

Have you ever had the chance to read through one of Terry Theise's catalogs? He gives very nice profiles of the growers.

They are available to download here:

http://www.skurnikwines.com/msw/theise_catalogs.html

The Merkelbachs have only recently come to the declassifcation game because they had no other choice to obtain kabinett (and in some years like 2005 released no kabinett at all).

I think they released at least one: a very unremarkable Kinheimer Rosenberg (feinherb).

Greetings / Fredrik L

[David M. Bueker]

That one didn't make it to the USA (apparently we didn't miss much).