Week 3 (12/5 - 12/12) Virtual Tasting Series for Charity - Riesling for Dakin Humane Society

Wine: Riesling
Sponsor: D@vid Bu3ker
Format: Anything Riesling. I will pay $5 per posted TN, and $10 per TN if you post a photo of you with the TN. However posting the bottle label doesn’t count for the $10 note.


About Dakin Humane Society
Dakin Humane Society is a community supported animal welfare organization that provides shelter, medical care, spay/neuter services, and behavioral rehabilitation for more than 20,000 animals each year. Since its inception in 1969, Dakin has become one of the most recognized nonprofit organizations in the Pioneer Valley and a national leader in animal welfare.

Our Mission
Dakin Humane Society delivers effective, innovative services that improve the lives of animals in need and the people who care about them.

What We Believe
We believe people are good and will make good decisions for animals when they are treated with kindness and understanding, and when they have enough information and resources.

Our Core Values
At Dakin, we have a set of core values that everyone involved with the organization shares and works every day to uphold. They are:

Integrity We hold ourselves to the highest standards of transparency, honesty, and respect in our words and actions.
Compassion We serve all people and animals with open, compassionate hearts and minds.
Optimism We meet challenges with a spirit of enthusiasm and optimism.
Innovation We seek out new ways of doing things and embrace change.
Effectiveness We work in a way that gets results as efficiently as possible.

Thanks for posting this Brig.

One thing that I should emphasize about Dakin, is that they take in animals from across the country when disaster (hurricanes, wildfires, etc.) strikes their homes. Sometimes when disaster strikes a dog or cat loses its forever home. Dakin helps them get a new one.

Is this the shelter where you adopted Houdini and Deus?

A few notes to help out their friends. From a mostly-Keller Abtserde tasting that Adrian hosted last night. The wines were all outstanding, though for all the hype (and price) the Abtserde GG gets, I found myself getting the more enjoyment from the Spätlese (and I recall it being the first bottle emptied as well).

2016 Weingut Keller Abts E® Riesling Großes Gewächs
Impressive, though this gives the impression of needing a lot of time. There’s fresh, pale orchard fruit and intense minerality here, with time bringing out more high toned/greener herbal elements on the nose and palate. Fantastic overall balance with bright acidity that makes it feel very lively and bright, though it always gives the impression that it’s holding something in reserve.

2015 Weingut Keller Abts E® Riesling Großes Gewächs
Like the 2016, it gives the impression of being very young and somewhat unyielding at first. Unlike the 16, it opens up quite nicely with some time in the decanter, and with some air this turns into a remarkably vivid and intense expression of minerality. There’s plenty of ripe Riesling fruit and a light floral note as well, but those characteristics are in the background and play a supporting role to the intense rocky mineral notes that dominate here. A fantastic wine to sit down and explore over a few hours. My favorite of the trio of GGs.

2006 Weingut Keller Abts E®.de Riesling Großes Gewächs
Poured after the '15 and '16 Abtserde GGs. I love the aromatics here - there’s the same bright fruit and minerality the other 2 Abtserdes showed, but the botrytis here adds more depth with exotic tropical fruit and honeyed notes. Of the 3 GGs, this had easily my favorite aromatic profile, with air also bringing out some light smoky and burnished notes. It shows the richness of the vintage of the palate too - it’s a heavier, slightly softer wine than the '15/'16 GGs, but still is very well balanced with no shortage of cut. Fantastic, though this is very much at peak and I don’t see this improving with more time in the cellar. Aside - the label on the other GGs says “Abts E®” (ah yes, thanks VDP and your absurd rules), this one says “Abtserde.”

2016 Weingut Keller Abts E® Riesling Spätlese
As good as the GGs were, this was my easy favorite of the whole lineup in terms of pure visceral pleasure. This feels electric with tons of acidity beneath an array of ripe citrus and tropical fruits, fresh herbs, and tons of minerality. It feels just slightly off dry, and the overall balance here is absolutely perfect. So damn delicious I can’t decide if I just want to drink a bunch more right now, or give these some time in the cellar.

2017 Weingut Keller Abts E® Riesling Auslese
Like this a lot, but it seems painfully young and somewhat of a monolith right now. It’s packed with ripe tropical fruit, honey, and plenty of acidity to balance the sweetness - but just comes across somewhat thick and primary at this stage, without the sheer electricity that marked the Spätlese and none of the complexity I expect time will bring. I’ll leave my bottles alone for some time, and I expect this should evolve into something amazing given the raw materials and overall sense of balance here.

Yes. Dakin is where our boys came from in December 2010.
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We have our first anonymous supporter, with a nice lump sum donation.

Cool you support this charity every year. I may not be popping a Riesling this week, but if you post the donation link, I will give a modest donation.

I’ll open a Riesling for you when I get home later this week.

Donation link: Donate - Dakin Humane Society

WARNING: you’ll forever be receiving emails with cute and adorable animals. I refuse to unsubscribe. [cheers.gif]

LOL, I still get weekly emails from FMIII’s charity! All good. I love furry animals.

The things I will do for cute, fuzzy animals…

This was a bar pour at my hotel, and amazingly enough it was objectively good. Not too sweet, good acidity, and fresh tree fruit flavors. I would be happy to drink a glass of this if offered. Go figure. Good to have an open mind.
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Thread title says 12/5… does this count or too early? basically has it started now?

I will be happy to make a small donation through the website posted. I do have a 2017 Schaefer note coming up too [cheers.gif] .

I’ll allow it. The dates were not in the title until I edited it.

Loading up the Xmas tree.

  • 2016 Paetra Riesling “K” - USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley (12/5/2018)
    Fantastic. Buying more. Just a hint of petrol on the nose to let you know you’re drinking a Riesling but not obtuse. Palate is yellow apple dominated but the acidity provides a citrus, lemon/lime foundation. Petrol shows up at the finish.

Posted from CellarTracker

I need to get some of Bill’s wines.

He makes great wine and doing the right way. Really easy to support. Berserker to boot.

Hopefully he’ll do another BerserkerDay offer for 2019. Last year’s was a no brainer.

I won’t post a photo of myself but here is one of our Dr. Bürklin-Hund (name changed) - who fits the cause being a rescue dog - and the bottle.




  • 2013 Dr. Bürklin-Wolf Ruppertsberger Hoheburg Riesling Trocken PC - Germany, Pfalz (6.12.2018)
    The nose is marked by a strong yet not quite overwhelming kerosene note. Additionally there are notes of lees, peach and crisp apple. The mouthfeel is quite rich and soft with the acidity coming through on the tangy finish. On the dry side, yet with no austerity whatsoever. Despite the relative softness this is neither flabby or tired. Instead it possesses nice crispness and energy, drinking very well and seeming like it could very well be on its way to firming up. While by no means the best PC the producer has made it is a quality wine in its own right and good stuff if looking for a Riesling with a bit more volume.

Posted from CellarTracker

I brought this to an Indian restaurant tonight:

2002 Robert Weil Kiedricher Gräfenberg Riesling Spätlese
Not yet tertiary but incredibly balanced and delicious. Green-tinged-light-golden color with aromas of peach and apple which are joined by cherry vanilla and sweet citrus on the opulent, intensely flavored palate. Medium-bodied and rich, though perfectly balanced by ripe acidity which carries this stunner to a long, almost prickly-textured finish. Fabulous.

2017 A to Z Riesling
My wife and I had a glass before dinner. Pale crystalline yellow liquid, clean nose suggesting the outdoors, complex taste hinting sweetness, slight tartness, a lot of fruit: apple with many other fruit nuances, including lime. Slight momentary bite to the finish, followed by a very long, dry, pleasant, lingering aftertaste. I enjoyed this wine. From Oregon! Pretty bottle! Also helps save the bees! ($12 at Costco)

2012 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Schlossberg Riesling Kabinett - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer (12/6/2018)
Three years since my last bottle, and this is beginning to open up again, in a very early glimpse of what it will become. It appears that it will become bottled joy. Riesling angels dance on the head of a pin, and spread fruit, stone, smoke and a hint of petrol in their wake. It’s light and elegant, but full of flavor. It’s a clear picture of the Mosel, and the stony depths of the Schlossberg.

Posted from CellarTracker