2018 Markus Molitor Brauneberger Mandelgraben One Star - Extremely smooth texture, Balanced judicious use of oak. 2018 was a ripe year in Germany which bodes well for Mosel Pinot. The fruit is vibrant and delicious. Overall a really nice wine and a good example of what Germany can deliver at a very fair price as this is available for $35 in the U.S.
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I’m a big fan of Gernot. He’s such a nice guy to sit and talk with about wine. We fell in love with his Pinot during the Mythos Mosel many years ago and then started going to his yearly release parties at his winery which was always a great time for both the wine and cheese he had at them.
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Agreed. I call him the Mayor of the Mosel! A party at his place is not too be missed.
Arrived exhausted in the Mosel after a 13 hour drive.
The hotel I often stay at has a lot of enomatic machines and a long list. Today I couldn’t face the list so chose a few wines to test my expectations.
Molitor ZS Kabi 21 flabby upfront. Has some zing. Ok
Selbach ZS 19 initially very heavy - then I realised I ordered spat by mistake so it’s just heavy, not very. Edging toward tropical.
Selbach ZS 20 Kabi - very flat, stoney, but lacking energy.
Prum gh 19 Kabi almost dry in comparison’! - closed down.
Reds
Selbach 21 Spätburgunder, confected cherry nose. Some mature notes already, very pale, reductive and light, thin.
Lehnert Veit piesporter gunterslay 20, darker fruits, lifted, bright fruit but oaky tannins quite chunky, remains clunky, Brett maybe?
Molitor Klosterberg 19, pretty nose, light, raspberry, a bit reductive, maybe a bit sulphurous, strict finish.
Phillips- Eckstein Spatburgunder 2020, menthol - slight cough syrup nose - connected. very fruity, dark red fruits, a bit ponderous, medicinal finish.
None were finished.
All held in enomatic so maybe open too long,
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I picked up a 21 Selbach Spatburgunder here a few months back and thought the exact same thing about the light and thin. Phillips-Eckstein Spatburgunder, I’ve always thought had a medicinal note to it I have never liked over the years.
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I would not say the Selbach are profound or anything but I think I like them slightly more than you and Russell. Interestingly I liked the ones I have had in the Mosel better than the ones I have had in the U.S.
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It’s a nice enough wine. Or o e I’d seek out to buy in volume but it’s cheap enough at around €16 retail.
Tasted a six tonight to figure out what to pour for a mate. Oddly disappointing given the line-up and maybe I am just off reds lately. All been open a few hours. I tasted and spit and then repeated later as I served.
'15 Walter Hundsrück “J” - shot. Wholly oxidized.
'18 Achim Durr Wolfhag. Too much structure, not enough stuffing. Time gives more succulence but also hollows out the finish. Not a complete wine.
'21 Thörle Probstey Trophy for best nose. Flipped tree roots and Autumn leaf pile - super chthonic. Has a vibe but there are too many off notes like pill casings and too old pomengranate seeds.
'21 Klundt Kastanienbusch Nicely middle of the road here. Most seamless but also pretty mid with no real there there. Black currant fruit and a pithy core.
'21 Östreicher K Katzensiert Just weird. Beautiful light color and then intense strawberry nose … then nothing. A little later, all floral and light. And then brothy. And it got drank more than others, so there was something compelling here. Tailings are delightful and am actually drinking them as I write.
’ 22 Philip Lardot Clear and above winner for me and others on the first pass. Succulent and complex with a great depth. An actual complete wine. Took 1hr of air to get there. Flattened out with air to be fine but not compelling.
It was just a weird night. Root day? I dunno. Things were so disjointed, I was glad I kept the Wasenhaus in reserve lest it be cursed. Oh… A/B testing…
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Those are quite the references!
I had the 21 Probstey and Hölle in late december and I did think the Probstey was less sexy compared to a year ago, becoming a bit crisper (which could be your chthonic, pill casing pomegranate notes). But it was still pretty damned tasty and easy. That said, 21 Hölle showed better in my glass.
Better luck on your next openings!
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Think I need to check in one of my 2015 Hundsrück 
I opened another this morning while straightening up. While not as shot, it was not particularly pleasurable for me - combination of aged notes and a saccharine core. Turned pretty brown in short order.
No particular reason why these were so off. I noted a ‘candy streak’ back in '20 so there is consistency here though I expected it to age a lot better than this. Oh well - since I am not really drinking right now, at least this wasn’t wasted pouring it out!
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Very distinctive marker, probably tannins. This is the second of 3 bottles, if only I had more.
Is that a Raven? @David_Bu3ker ?
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The carrion crow (Corvus corone) ?
2014 Ziereisen Rhini Spätburgunder, opened tonight is crazy good. I absolutely love this bottle of wine. 10 years old and it’s come together perfectly. There’s still some “red” pinot fruit on the nose and in the mouth, and a touch of tannin and acidity but nothing spiky or unpleasant. Fastball low and away and Papi smoked it into right center field. All Posada could do is watch.
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That sounds extremely promising. Thanks for the great note.
2014 Rudolf Fürst Hundsrück Spätburgunder Großes Gewächs
I previously had this at the winery when first released. Served blind. This was out of place in the lineup of 5 wines which was supposed to be lighter reds but included 2 Bordeaux a Cal Cab and a Cote rotie. As a result this seemed to have a lighter body but was fuller when tried again later. Made with a whole cluster pressing. Crimson color. Cherry aromas. Notes of red licorice, iron, cranberries and wet stones. The tannins are still firm with a nice bite on the finish. 95 points.
VM
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Let’s talk about 2019 E&M Liaison… I’m three bottles in over the past two months. Two have shown very advanced bricking and color, the kind that would have me guessing this was a 20+ year old wine. One of those two showed stewed fruit / raisin-y notes on the nose upon opening. Both of those two improved dramatically by night 2 and turned out quite lovely. A third bottle did not display the strange color, but was not frankly as impressive a bottle as the other two! Strange, right? What’s going on here? Weird heat damage? Weird bottle variability? Notes on cellar tracker are very divergent, with many describing it as funky in a bad way (I didn’t experience that). I’m still happy overall with my experiences, just trying to figure out what the heck is going on.
Although not E&M, I had a similiar situation with a Spatburgunder from the Mosel. We purchased a half case directly from the winery and they stayed in the box next to each other in our cellar their entire lifespan. The first two bottles were in perfect condition, the third bottle was like you had said stewed/raisin fruits. The fourth and fifth bottles were just off so I opened the sixth bottle the next week to cut my losses and get rid of it and it was in such perfect condition I was kicking myself for not saving it. This took place over a 5 year span and I still scratch my head on it.
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Was your bottle a low SO2 / natural wine? The problems with the 2019 E&M just seem like typical low intervention winemaking. I have had many glorious bottles of E&M but also some outright duds…it happens.
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It was not.