**2001 J & HA Strub Niersteiner Paterberg Riesling Spätlese *****
I’ve had lots of up and down experiences as I worked my way through a case of this wine. Some bottles have seemed very immature and closed, while others have shown an overly aged character (e.g. lots of dried fruit). Of course now that I am down to 2 bottles (ok…1 bottle) the wine has finally decided to come back out to play. When I pulled the cork the aroma of subtly grilled pineapple jumped right out of the bottle. The pineapple aroma continued to dominate, but it was joined by some maturing elements (spice, citrus peel) as well. At 10 years post release this wine is still extremely sweet, but the stars on the label give some indication that it’s no ordinary spatlese. In fact this really functions more like a bright auslese, with the exception that it does not have the honeyed character of botrytis. I like where this wine is right now, though there’s no lack of fruit or sweetness, so no worries about it drying out any time in the near future. Drink with rich food.
Thanks for the update. I too have had lots of ups-and-downs with the 2001 Strubs (which were pretty exciting on release and fantastic QPR).
Any thoughts on the non-star 2001 Strub Niersteiner Paterberg Spätlese? I have a few bottles left.
I still have 3 bottles of the no star, but have not touched one since 2009.
Thanks for the note. I am fairly new to the riesling game and absolutely love the German take on these. Ever since my introduction with the 2004 vintage, I have been trying to squirrel away a case or two of spatleses from every vintage. I was under the impression that these are really built for aging (the 2001 and 2005’s especially) so my rule has been to keep my hands of these for the first 15 years or so, tasting one bottle on release, but letting the rest sleep. With that in mind, I am curious as to why you have consumed all but 1 bottle of this wine within 10 years from release? Am I going to be sorry in 10 years or so when I pop my corks only to find that they are well over the hill?
TIA.
Mike
Strub makes good wines, but not the most ageworthy IMO. Also the Paterberg is not the most noble soil.
I have plenty of wines from other producers that I hold for the long haul.
In addition, there’s a period from 7-12 years old or so where the wines can show some fascinating combinations of youth and older characteristics.
Checked in on one of these…
It begins quietly with a subdued nose of mineral and lime, but this baby is anything but boring. On the tongue, there’s fantastic, endless length, big sweet palate impact, yet it’s not heavy at all. This bottling is in better shape than the non-star spatlese, indeed it is going strong. To be sure, it has mellowed and become creamier, and some honeyed notes have taken hold. The Granny Smith bite has mellowed into a Golden Delicious, but there is still an awesome zing holding everything in balance. Drink now, it won’t get much better than this. 93 points