Heinz Albert, of the Adam Albert estate in the Rheingau, was, IMO, the best winemaker in Germany of his time.
The 1976 vintage, across Germany, was an onslaught of ripeness and botrytis. Too much of a good thing, in many cases. The challenge in this vintage was to tame the ripeness and botrytis, and to produce wines that weren't over the top and flabby in terms of being too sweet, cloying, and under-acidic.
Heinz Albert came through with flying colors with this wine. It is all that a classic Rheingau Beerenauslese should be. Here we are, 35 years out from the vintage. Visually, this wine has a burnished gold color. On the nose, there's the telltale shoe polish of botrytis, but also flowers and tropical fruits. If you presented this wine to me blind, there's no way I'd guess it was that old.
In the mouth, there is no sign at all of age. Wonderful riesling fruit flavors. Classic Rheingau. Perfect balance between fruit, acid, and sweetness--so difficult to achieve, and to maintain for 35 years--with a Beerenauslese. The finish goes on forever.
This is a top wine, from the top German wine producer, at the top of his game, at the peak of maturity. I only wish that he were still making wine.
Triple Curly, with extra woo-woo-woo! German sweet riesling doesn't get much better than this.
-Paul W.