WTN: Amphora aged Riesling

2009 Peter Jakob Kühn Riesling "Amphore" - Germany, Rheingau
12,5% abv. This smells really wonderful but Riesling is perhaps the last thing that comes to mind from the scent: it is all acacia (where did that come from in an amphora aged wine?) and cloudberry. It is wonderfully moreish and the evaporation rate is alarmingly high; high but friendly acidity, wonderful grip. As opposed to the purity of fruit of a normal Riesling, this one is intense and savoury and seems to be more about secondary characteristics than pure fruit. So no points for this being true to the grape, but lots of points for being a "freak" wine that was friendly and engaging and just great fun to drink.

Argggghhh.....is nothing sacred anymore??? Amphorae-aged wines in Germany?? Oyyyy...when will it all end???
Thanks for the note, Otto. I have long (well....maybe for a month or so) wondered when the movement towards skin-contact
whites and amphorae/qvervi-aged wines would eventually reach Germany. Now we know...it has.
I would gather from your note, Otto, that this was a wine made by extended skin maceration. That typically destroys any
varietal character. What was the color on this wine?? Was it a skin-contact wine made in an oxidative or reductive style??
Very interesting...something I'd love to try. I'm very much into "weird"..be it wines or people.
Tom

I would gather from your note, Otto, that this was a wine made by extended skin maceration. That typically destroys any
varietal character. What was the color on this wine?? Was it a skin-contact wine made in an oxidative or reductive style??
Very interesting...something I'd love to try. I'm very much into "weird"..be it wines or people.
Tom

It doesn't look like an orange wine; it looks just as light as a conventional 2009 Riesling should. But you are right in that it does smell ever so slightly oxidative and as if it did have skin contact.

Hi Otto -

Thank you for the note. I had one of Kühn's "orange" wines earlier this year, and enjoyed it a lot, although it was not aged in amphorae. Would definitely love to try this bottling sometime.

Interesting to see that this is designated as a Rheingauer Landwein on the label. Not that the Landwein category ever had much relevance, but it's still pretty unusual to see it on a label.

Hi Otto -

Thank you for the note. I had one of Kühn's "orange" wines earlier this year, and enjoyed it a lot, although it was not aged in amphorae. Would definitely love to try this bottling sometime.

Interesting to see that this is designated as a Rheingauer Landwein on the label. Not that the Landwein category ever had much relevance, but it's still pretty unusual to see it on a label.

It most certainly failed to show any typicity at the Amtliche Prüfung tasting. Many producers that I know are proud when they get low scores (the tasting is really quite a joke), but you have to score pretty 'badly' not to get approval for Qualitätswein. I love Peter Jacob Kühns wines, even though the Amphore is a little passe. Whatever -It is a great winery that is willing to experiment despite freaking out the more traditional Rheingau customer -and most of the wines aren't especially strange.

Cheers,
Bill

Hi Otto -

Thank you for the note. I had one of Kühn's "orange" wines earlier this year, and enjoyed it a lot, although it was not aged in amphorae. Would definitely love to try this bottling sometime.

Interesting to see that this is designated as a Rheingauer Landwein on the label. Not that the Landwein category ever had much relevance, but it's still pretty unusual to see it on a label.

It most certainly failed to show any typicity at the Amtliche Prüfung tasting. Many producers that I know are proud when they get low scores (the tasting is really quite a joke), but you have to score pretty 'badly' not to get approval for Qualitätswein. I love Peter Jacob Kühns wines, even though the Amphore is a little passe. Whatever -It is a great winery that is willing to experiment despite freaking out the more traditional Rheingau customer -and most of the wines aren't especially strange.

Cheers,
Bill

Bill -

I figured that the Amphore got tagged as a Landwein because of the lack of typicity - still, it's not common these days. 'Landwein' seems to be more commonly used on Austrian labels - a couple of the Terry Theise-imported liter bottlings are Landweine.

Any chance that you've had Kühn's Orleans, and if so, what did you think of it?

Hi Andrew,

I haven't. I have tried both Knipser and Breuer Gelber Orleans and tasted some on the vine on Monday. It is a high acid grape so Knipser makes it into a late-harvest dessert wine sometimes -the 2011 that I had last week was very dry though and a little lean. Breuer also makes a dry wine from it, though from much riper grapes. It is Rheingau Rieslingish in the mouth, but has a distinct nuttiness -I love it. In fact I think of it as one of Germanys great unknown treasures (though they only make about 400 bottles a year.)

Cheers,
Bill

Hi Bill,
This statement doesn’t really “click” for me;
“I love Peter Jacob Kühns wines, even though the Amphore is a little passé. Whatever -It is a great winery that is willing to experiment despite freaking out the more traditional Rheingau customer -and most of the wines aren't especially strange.”

“Amphore is a little passé.” (Maybe, but if you’re a believer in the “Natural or Traditional Winemaking Movement” do you want to go back any further than this? If so wouldn’t that involve making wine in the crevices of rocks? )

“…willing to experiment….” (“Experiment” with ancient (almost forgotten) winemaking techniques. I have a lot of respect for these winemakers and give them a lot of credit, there is some “risk” involved here).

“….freaking out the more traditional Rheingau customer….” (I assume you mean the “modern-day” Rheingau customer.)

One quick question- The producers themselves can “down-grade” the wine?

Salute

Hi Victor,

Not everyone will agree with me, but I personally feel that the resurgence of Amphora has become a little stale. I’m glad that they are available for those that want them and I’m happy to drink them too. Sometimes.

And sure, one can experiment with traditional techniques -don’t you think? We are in agreement about the risk involved and the courage that it takes to undertake these measures. Good for Kühn.

Yes, I do indeed mean the modern-day Rheingau customer and every consumer of Rheingau wines since the invention of oak fermenting vessels.

Producers submit wines to be tested with a form that has been approved by a registered wine laboratory.

It lists: The vintage year, the village where it was produced, the vineyard (if single vineyard designated), the Qualitätsstufe -A winery can write in any level that the wine could legally qualify for: Qualitätswein, and Prädikatswein with whichever Prädikat the winery indicates as long as it meets the minimum must weight, Kabinett to TBA. Also listed from the Laboratory are total alcohol, total extract, sugar-free extract, remaining fermentable sugar, Glucose, Total acidity, Free sulfur, total sulfur, total gravity, CO2, if the sample is from Barrel (to be sold that way) or bottle, how much wine was produced, the date of bottling, if it was chaptalized (and by how much), and if the wine came from estate vineyards or purchased grapes/must/wine.

The wine is then tasted and graded on quality in regards to these criteria. If the human tasting panel fails to give it a high enough score (based on questionable and highly subjective personal tastes), it will be downgraded. An Amtliche Prüfungsnummer is only required of wines QbA and higher. If a producer doesn’t want to (or can’t due to geographical or grape variety restrictions) apply for Qualitätswein status, he/she need not do so, but then cannot use those legally defined words.

Cheers,
Bill

Hi Andrew,

I haven't. I have tried both Knipser and Breuer Gelber Orleans and tasted some on the vine on Monday. It is a high acid grape so Knipser makes it into a late-harvest dessert wine sometimes -the 2011 that I had last week was very dry though and a little lean. Breuer also makes a dry wine from it, though from much riper grapes. It is Rheingau Rieslingish in the mouth, but has a distinct nuttiness -I love it. In fact I think of it as one of Germanys great unknown treasures (though they only make about 400 bottles a year.)

Cheers,
Bill

Bill -

Thanks for the info. Would love to try one of these sometime.