WTN: Two Auslese

2003 Weingut von Othegraven Kanzemer Altenberg Riesling Auslese Erste Lage Auction
Not on the near-transcendental level of the previous bottle I opened in Sonoma last month, but still very, very impressive. Full of ripe tropical and green citrus fruits around a core of minerals with both honeyed and cooler herbal elements emerging as this airs. A little richer and sweeter than my other bottle without having quite the same acid-driven precision, but this still shows the same sense of purity, power and impressive back end presence that wowed me last time. (AP #17-04)

2007 St. Urbans-Hof Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Auslese
Classical, older-styled Auslese (that isn't too far from a modern Spätlese in terms of weight and sweetness) showing fresh Mosel florality and white fruited flavours accented by slate, honey and faint touches of sulfur. Very polished and faintly creamy on the middle with moderate sweetness and bright acidity that keep it very refreshing and make it an excellent food wine.

[David M. Bueker]

Faint sulfur on the Urbans-Hof? Most of the Urbans-Hof wines I have opened lately have been sulfurous enough to scare sinners into converting.

Yeah, faint. That St. Urbans-Hof Auslese was a really pleasant surprise - I was afraid it would either smell like Dante's Inferno, or show the softness that I've cribbed about in a lot of '07s (and expected in a Piesporter Goldtröpfchen), but it was really delicious. Though given my issues with the high sulfur levels on some of the other SUH wines, I won't be buying a lot more (as the '07 Ockfener Bockstein Kabinett some time back wouldn't stop smelling of eggs).

[David M. Bueker]

Spencer opened a 2001 SUH PG kabinett a few weeks ago that was as full of fire and brimstone as a Methodist sermon from the 1780s.