WTN: 2 07s from Maximin Grünhaus & a Muscadet

Muscadet Côtes de Grandlieu sur lie 2009 – Domaine de la Touquetière – Alc.12 - was bought experimentally from a Carrefour hypermarket and surprised me by its quality. It was at least as good as the Muscadet I enjoyed last week in a Norman restaurant; equally crisp and mineral, with salt and iodine notes to the extent that I could almost taste oysters though I was eating crab, together with a supplement of juicy fruit and a touch of “gras”; 15.5/20+++.


Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Spätlese trocken – 03 – 2007 – C. von Schubert – Alc.11.5% - was as crisp and mineral as the Muscadet with less salt and no iodine but with the plus of Riesling fragrance, complexity and grace and a firm finish. It also begins to convince me that MSR wines do not necessarily demand at least a little perceptible RS for balance; 16/20+++.

Maximin Grünhäuser Abtsberg Kabinett – 33 – 2007 – C. von Schubert – Alc.8.5% - a deliciously elegant Kabinett with beautifully focused white fruit, spice, minerals, juicy acidity and a dash of petrol and sweetness. It had less tension and a more caressing feel than the 2008 of a few weeks ago but was less exuberant than my memory of a bottle drink about 3 years ago in the first flush of its youth. In time greater complexity may emerge if I have any bottles left; 16/20+++.

Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Spätlese trocken – 03 – 2007 – C. von Schubert – Alc.11.5% - was as crisp and mineral as the Muscadet with less salt and no iodine but with the plus of Riesling fragrance, complexity and grace and a firm finish. It also begins to convince me that MSR wines do not necessarily demand at least a little perceptible RS for balance; 16/20+++.

This is interesting. I gave up on the 07 Abtsberg Spatlese trocken last year and finished all my bottles because it was developing too slowly for my tastes and I wasn't sure I could see a better future ahead beyond its shrillness. Of course that giving up was conditioned by my severely limited storage space. I suspected it might get better with enough age, but had too many other 'sure things' to justify experimenting. Oh the woes of limited cellar space!

Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg Spätlese trocken – 03 – 2007 – C. von Schubert – Alc.11.5% - was as crisp and mineral as the Muscadet with less salt and no iodine but with the plus of Riesling fragrance, complexity and grace and a firm finish. It also begins to convince me that MSR wines do not necessarily demand at least a little perceptible RS for balance; 16/20+++.

This is interesting. I gave up on the 07 Abtsberg Spatlese trocken last year and finished all my bottles because it was developing too slowly for my tastes and I wasn't sure I could see a better future ahead beyond its shrillness. Of course that giving up was conditioned by my severely limited storage space. I suspected it might get better with enough age, but had too many other 'sure things' to justify experimenting. Oh the woes of limited cellar space!

I didn't find the wine at all shrill, though maybe our tastes differ; 2008, however, was a bit that way when I last looked. I have stored these bottles in a warmer part of my cellar which may have brought them forward. I think that there is plenty more life and probably improvement potential in these two 07s.

I didn't find the wine at all shrill, though maybe our tastes differ... I think that there is plenty more life and probably improvement potential in these two 07s.

This was 1-2 years ago. But who knows.

Anyway, interesting note. Thanks.