2021 Weingut Keller Vom Muscheligen Kalk- Germany, Rheinhessen (7/24/2022)
A fair bit of dissolved CO2 on first open. Even my usual tried and true method of pouring the wine back and forth between two decanters several times did not seem to move it. Aromatically compelling, but the palate was not the most interesting. Knowing the wine from previous vintages, I chose to place it back in the bottle, to step away from it for a few hours and revisit it late as I opened something else in the meantime. Four hours later when I returned to it BAM! even straight out of the fridge there was that all too familiar Keller magic focus pull I’m all too familiar with, separating and combining all of the layers in a seamless manner (is there an ARRI Hi-5 in the Flörsheim-Dalsheim cellar?) A nice phenolic bite on entry followed by a floral, citrusy and textural ensemble on the mid palate with loads of grip and screaming high acid on the finish and back to the long phenolic finish . As it warmed up (I do find that this wine benefits from being served on the warmer side ~16-17ºC), all of those densely packed layers began unfurling. This is always a wine I find myself wanting to chew. There are so many layers to unpack. Seashells, quince paste, grapefruit pith, petitgrain, mahlab, penja white pepper, viburnum and sweet osmanthus. AP 07 22
More and more I am experimenting with opening German whites and then trying them over several hours or even days. It is amazing how even simple wines open up more.
For sure. Year in, year out, I’m amazed by how textural and layered this simple field blend cuvee is
Recently, one of my favourite things to do is to open a producer’s entry level wine and approach it with the same care and attention that I would with their top cuvee. It’s not always, but it’s amazing how much one can get out of it at times.
I’d say that a prolonged tasting over a few days is what I aim for with almost all young/new release wines.
One doesn’t shake hands with someone and think that you know one another.
Some time, patience, unfolding…'tis only natural. And nearly always worthwhile.
If people are accustomed to polishing off a whole bottle during a meal, I recommend opening two, and then following the evolution of both…
I find that Riesling can go particularly long with aeration, lasting for far longer than one would imagine.