TN: Riesling Freaks lazy afternoon lunch

WINE TALK
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RIESLING FREAKS LAZY AFTERNOON LUNCH - Chez Hugo - Baltimore (2/10/2019)

Tom organized a lunch to drink Riesling. Since I complained a bit, he added a few Barolos. He generously contributed most of the wines and we added a few. Steve Monnier, an incredibly talented chef of Chez Hugo, opened the restaurant just for us. Over a dozen of us got together to enjoy wine and food. I typically don’t mention a lot about the food but this is one of those occasions where as good as the wines were, Chef Monnier’s cooking outshined them. If you are in Baltimore, you owe to yourself to dine at Chez Hugo.

Chris and John, true professionals as they came as guests but can’t let go of their profession! — at Chez Hugo Bistro.

A lot of Rieslings!
Champagne
I am in love with the 96 Krug in magnum!

  • 1996 Krug Champagne Vintage Brut - France, Champagne
    En magnum from the same case as the perfect mag drunk in December, 2017. Beautiful complex nose displaying perfectly ripe sweet yellow fruit with a hint of red, tarte tatin, dry apricot, yellow cherry, grilled porcini, cinnamon, nutmeg, brioche, crushed rose pedal and limestone. Perfect balance and precision, so finely layered sweet yet subtle and precise yellow fruit, very find mousse, bright acidity, strong limestone and a seamless long warm yet precise sweet yellow fruit driven finish with cinnamon and tarte tatin at the end. Similar to the last bottle, it is not necessarily fresher than the fifth but rounder and warmer without losing the incredible precision and balance. (98 pts.)
  • 2008 Pol Roger Champagne Vintage Brut - France, Champagne
    Incredible fresh and energetic nose displaying fresh lemon and apple, a hint of honey, spicy spices and crushed rocks. Fresh and energetic balance, Chablis Les Clos like mineral and focus, generous very fine mousse, bright acidity, incredibly mineral and a long clean and energetic finish. Really refreshing and thirst quenching kinda Champagne. Really impressive and enjoyable. (94 pts.)
  • 2011 Weiser-Künstler Enkircher Steffensberg Riesling Brut Rieslingsekt - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
    Medium expressive nose displaying green apple, apple pie, a hint of petrol, caramel, chlorine, thyme and spicy spices. Rich and deeply toned, medium abundant mousse, medium acidity and a medium long finish. Interesting but “natural” feel to it. (90 pts.)

GG Magnums

  • 2006 Weingut Keller Hubacker Riesling Großes Gewächs - Germany, Rheinhessen
    En magnum. Expressive nose displaying rich ripe yellow fruit, lemon curd, baked apple, burnt sugar, caramel, sweet spices and limestone. Excellent concentration, deeply toned rich yellow fruit, dense and oily, bright acidity, good limestone mineral and a long dense yellow fruit driven finish with burnt sugar and sweet spices at the end. It has a bit of fizz. This is a really rich and dense wine. Kinda heavy weight and serious. (94 pts.)
  • 2007 Wittmann Westhofener Morstein Riesling Großes Gewächs - Germany, Rheinhessen
    En Magnum. Very fresh and energetic nose displaying granny smith, pear, kiwi, rosemary, smoked meat and limestone. Very linear palate, nicely layered fresh white fruit, cool and energetic, bright acidity, strong limestone mineral and a long clean cool white fruit driven finish. A great contrast to the Keller which denser and richer. (93 pts.)
  • 2009 Schäfer-Fröhlich Bockenauer Felseneck Riesling Großes Gewächs - Germany, Nahe
    En Magnum. Expressive, incredibly mineral nose displaying rich yet pure white fruit with a hint of yellow, lemon curd, granny smith, jalapeno, thyme, spicy spices and limestone. Excellent concentration, incredible energy, focus and precision, bright acidity, strong mineral presence and a long rich yet pure white citrus fruit driven finish with thyme and jalapeno at the end. There is a bit of fizz. It combines the richness of Keller and the purity and freshness of the Wittmann. It is really enjoyable already but can improve for a couple more decades if you prefer the strong petrol note. (95 pts.)

[*]2012 Nikolaihof Riesling Reserve Steiner Hund - Austria, Niederösterreich, Wachau
Expressive nose displaying ripe yellow citrus fruit, lemon curd, candied lemon peel, a hint of grilled cep, sweet spices and limestone. Excellent concentration, finely layered yellow citrus, dense yet pure precise, bright acidity, strong limestone mineral and a long sweet citrus fruit driven finish. It is also showing exceptional complexity. Clearly displaying the producer style, excellent showing. (94 pts.)
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Pichler

  • 2007 F.X. Pichler Riesling Smaragd Loibner Berg - Austria, Niederösterreich, Wachau
    Medium expressive nose displaying rich yellow fruit, lemon, lychee, spearmint, tobacco and steely mineral. Very good concentration, packed ripe yellow citrus fruit, dense yet focused, a hint of sweetness, bright acidity, strong steely mineral and a long ripe citrus fruit driven finish with tobacco and spearmint at the end. This is a rich and dense yet steely Riesling. (92 pts.)
  • 2013 F.X. Pichler Riesling Unendlich - Austria, Niederösterreich, Wachau
    Expressive youthful nose displaying fresh white fruit, pear, apple, lychee, spicy spices, thyme, saline and limestone mineral. Very precise and focused, cool and linear, bright acidity, strong limestone mineral and a long, clean and fresh pure white fruit driven finish. This is very primary and energetic wine. Really enjoyable wine that will be an excellent match to a rich fish this like salmon in beurre blanc. (94 pts.)
  • 2012 F.X. Pichler Riesling Smaragd Dürnsteiner Kellerberg - Austria, Niederösterreich, Wachau
    En magnum. Expressive rich yet refined nose displaying fresh succulent white fruit, pear, lychee, oyster shell, sweet spices and mineral. Excellent concentration, very finely layered white fruit, very fluid and precise, bright acidity, strong limestone mineral and a long fresh and pure white fruit driven finish. The palate is very refined. Excellent showing. (95 pts.)

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresc Magnums

  • 1989 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Rabajà - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
    En magnum. The most refined wine of the flight. Beautiful fully mature nose display subtle dry red fruit, dry cherries, strawberry jam, strong iron, tar, caramel, cinnamon, leather, anise and earth. Fully integrated palate, finely layered dry cherry, lean, fluid and precise, bright acidity, steely mineral and a seamless long dry cherry driven finish with a hint of iron and anise at the end. Tom generously provided the same Produttori flight in August, 2017 and this was my WOTF. My favorite once again. (95 pts.)
  • 1989 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Asili - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
    Extremely ripe expression where fruitcake dominates and there is a hint of oxidative note. The flavor is murky. In lieu of having tasted an excellent magnum in 2017, I suspect this is a slightly oxidized bottle. NR (flawed)
  • 1989 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco Riserva Montestefano - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barbaresco
    En magnum. Fully mature nose displaying slightly dry red and black fruit, dry cherry, blackberry liqueur, licorice, leather, dark spices, rusty nail and steely mineral. Fully mature palate with concentrated dry fruit. There is mouth puckering tannin that almost numbs your palate. Tom mentions that it improves with air. I agree but I still prefer the Rabaja as I am unable to get over the initial monster tannin impression. (93 pts.)

Brovia
There were solid wines. The normale is really tasty.

  • 2007 Fratelli Brovia Barolo - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
    Medium expressive nose displaying subtle red fruit, anise, spicy spices, a hint of leather and earth. Medium concentration, subtle dry cherry fruit, warm, soft and round, good acidity, earthy mineral and a medium long subtle red fruit driven finish with anise and spicy spices driven finish. This is a very approachable young Barolo. (91 pts.)
  • 2007 Fratelli Brovia Barolo Garblèt Sué - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
    Medium expressive nose displaying black cherry, blackberry, a hint of dry cherry, anise, dark spices and earth. Very good concentration, a hint of carbonation, medium acidity, noticeable slightly coarse tannins and a medium finish. Showing better concentration than the regular Barolo but not necessarily more complex. Needs another five to ten years. (93 pts.)
  • 2007 Fratelli Brovia Barolo Rocche - Italy, Piedmont, Langhe, Barolo
    Expressive big scale nose displaying slightly dry black and red fruit, black cherry, blackberry, a hint of dry cherry, anise and iron. Excellent concentration, nicely layered concentrated black fruit, rich and unctuous, medium acidity and mineral, and a long rich black cherry fruit driven finish with anise at the end. This is the most concentrated wine of the flight. Needs another five to ten years to reach the youthful peak. (94 pts.)

More Rieslings and a Gewurztraminer

BA and TBA

  • 1976 Weingut von Othegraven Kanzemer Berg Riesling Beerenauslese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
    Beautiful bright golden color. Perfectly mature yet incredibly fresh and complex nose displaying ripe yellow fruit, peach, lemon curd, baked apple, custard, honey, sweet spices and limestone. Very precise and harmonious palate, so finely layered perfectly ripe pure yellow fruit, concentrated yet fluid and weightless, perfect amount of acidity, strong mineral, and a seamless long finish with honey and peach pie at the end. It is not too sweet which is surprising. Bought at a London auction, I had no idea what to expect. Exceptional freshness and complexity. (98 pts.)
  • 1983 Von Schubert Maximin Grünhäuser Abtsberg Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese - Germany, Mosel Saar Ruwer
    Incredibly complex nose displaying slightly dry yellow fruit, dry fig, dry apricot, yellow raisin, peach, toffee, brown sugar, honey and sweet spices. Incredible concentration, very finely layered concentrated dry yellow fruit, ripe and intense yet pure and precise, fluid and weightless, bright acidity and the finish that never ends. This is a great example of TBA, unbelievably intense yet pure dry fruit driven nose and weightless palate. (97 pts.)

As usual, a great time was had by all and the lunch ended around 6. My sincere gratitude goes to Tom for organizing and generously providing the wines.
Posted from CellarTracker

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Thanks for the notes Kevin, wonderful selection of wines

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Kevin, very disappointed you didn’t have a Rieslingfreak wine. They are worth seeking out.

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Excellent written. I like very much the Riesling descriptors
Great wines

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Riesling from Down Under

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Thank you!!

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This sounds awesome.

[*]> 2012 Nikolaihof Riesling Reserve Steiner Hund > - Austria, Niederösterreich, Wachau
Expressive nose displaying ripe yellow citrus fruit, lemon curd, candied lemon peel, a hint of grilled cep, sweet spices and limestone. Excellent concentration, finely layered yellow citrus, dense yet pure precise, bright acidity, strong limestone mineral and a long sweet citrus fruit driven finish. It is also showing exceptional complexity. Clearly displaying the producer style, excellent showing. > (94 pts.)
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This also sounds excellent. I’ve not had a Nikolaihof; how would you describe their “producer style”?

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Which has generally awful distribution in the USA.

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[scratch.gif] [wow.gif]

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I’m always interested in comments like this. I know this wine reasonably well over a number of vintages. What do you think is the “producer style”, and how does that differentiate itself from the vineyard source, and vintage?

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Nikolaihof wines seem to be “ready and complete” even at young age and shows exceptional complexity. The fruit is always ripe, slightly coiled, sweet and yellow yet bright acidity and steely mineral help to retain excellent balance and precision.

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Cool
Thanks Kevin.

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Steiner Hund from Kremstal are also worth seeking out. Great quality at half price, compared to Wachau (for some of them)