This is really quite a pleasant wine for a relatively cheap wine (by Finnish standards of course): in Alko's selection very few wines under 15€ provide such pleasure. A clean, crisp pure Riesling aroma; a bit on the soft side (which is why I was surprised to read the tech sheet: 7,1 g/l acidity; 11 g/l RS; 12,5% abv), lacking the nervosity of the best Rieslings (but at this price, one can't really expect that!) but with enough bite to keep it moreish. I can see myself buying more of this.
2010 Balthasar Ress Von Unserm Riesling trocken - Germany, Rheingau (7/19/2012)
14€; 12% abv; 8,6 g/l acidity; 9 g/l sugar. Not much aroma on day one. Day two does show some pure Riesling fruit. This is pleasantly crisp and high in acid and doesn't become unpleasantly harsh and citric despite this year being famously high in acid. It's nice enough, but not great and not so inspiring that I would buy myself a second bottle.
2011 Karl Schaefer Dürkheimer Spielberg Riesling Spätlese Schöne Anna - Germany, Pfalz (7/16/2012)
8,5% abv. At first I was a bit apprehensive since the aroma was almost entirely of pear drops - classic aromas of cold fermentation and nothing else. Half an hour later more interesting aromas began to emerge. A broad, ripe Rieslingness began to appear: it was mineral but also citric. Nice grip. Lovely sweetness, gentle but upright acidity. No hard edges here, but it is an interesting and enjoyable Pfalz Spätlese. Nice!
