Müller-Catoir Haardter Herzog Rieslaner Spätlese 2008 -Pfalz, Germany
This is very likely one of the most intense and exotic wines that I’ve ever tasted (and off the top of my head, I can’t think of another close contender.) It is a trapeze act. It is the Philippe Petit of wine. The flavors wax and wane from one sip to the next between apricot preserves, sweet cantaloupe, peaches, lemon shortbread, marzipan and clover honey. There is also a faintly pungent mineral element that is obscured by the fruit, a kind of Silvaner Loaminess that I love. Presently it has a sort of right-from-the-box creamy texture, but I look forward to tasting it again in a few years after it firms up and gains more definition. This wine is sleek and powerful and exciting and I can’t wipe the smile off my face! 8,5% -BH