TN: 99 von Kesselstadt Scharzhofberger Spätlese

WINE TALK
1

This wine blew away all the other Spätlesen in several 99 tastings I was at in 2001 and 2002 with its intensity and complexity, and I bought a bunch. The last time I had it, three years ago, the nose was terrific, but it seemed to lack a little acid. That was always my fear about the 99s, the claims of the winemakers notwithstanding that the acid levels were just masked by the ripeness. But you’d hope that, in such a year, the bracing acidity of the Saar would be a good foil.

So here we are in 2009, and the nose is just as spectacular – a rich, heady mixture of honey and lemon drop, evolving slowly. But in the mouth it was downright flabby, limp, sort of like a lot of 89s. For the moment, I’d score this somewhere south of 87, which is pathetic for a top-flight vineyard from a good producer.

Sigh. Perhaps it’s just in transition.

2

Have you any other comparable MSR 99 notes (tasted recently)? If it’s a vintage-wide issue, after all, no blame accrues…(less blame accrues?)

3

My experience with 1999 Germans (mostly Nahe that I base this on) is that after showing better than expected for a while, they have been in decline in the last 6-12 months, hopefully to reprise in the not too distant future.

4

That’s funny, Claude, because the exceptions to what I was saying about the 99s were two Nahes, the Dönnhoff Spätlesen from Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle and Norheimer Kirschheck. Bottles I’ve opened this year were flat for a few minutes, but then blossomed in the glass and were absolutely glorious, with good acidity and extraordinary complexity. These wines need decanting or some real time in the glass.