I think there’s been a bit of a style shift exactly as you describe over the last decade.
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2014 Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese
From a 375ml bottle. Medium yellow color. No petrol aromas. Semi dry to dry. Apple and chamomile notes. The acids were restrained but appropriate. Slightly better than the bottle that I had 8 years ago. 90 points.
VM
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Two with banh mi for lunch on the deck.
Is there a producer more perplexing to me than Falkenstein?
I can’t think of any other producer, in a category of wine I like, which is universally loved, and which I can’t appreciate. Everyone seems to not only love, but go gaga for, Falkenstein. But Jonathan and I find every single bottle no more than fine - clean, quaffable, pleasant, but utterly devoid of impact or interest or opinion. Even Donnhoff, plenty of people share my opinion, though others clearly love the wines. But with Falkenstein, it’s pretty much just us. It can’t be a mass delusion, but it is damn confounding!
The only other similar situation is Aramasa sake - everyone loves it, and we find it totally boring, all of the many bottlings. We’ve often said Aramasa is the Falkenstein of sake. 
The Martin Mullen needed time in the decanter to open, and was much better, though not fantastic. Perhaps a few more years.
The sandwiches were excellent, as was the weather.
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I can see that. And I never thought they were ‘universally’ loved. Maybe if you restrict the population to a tight sample of Racy Wine Geeks. It’s such a particular and even extreme style for (German) riesling, so I know plenty of wine folks who aren’t interested.
I do agree that the Love Hype Fest ramped up really quickly and got quite annoying from the perspective of an average consumer. But I do like the wines so it was difficult to begrudge them the attention.
That said, things seem to have calmed a bit, as the wines are a bit easier to find than a few years ago.
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You’re not alone.
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I’m kind of curious which sake producers you prefer to Aramasa. I always got the sense that wine geeks liked Aramasa because has vinous characteristics (lower alcohol, higher acidity, more fruit flavors, than typical sake). Is Aramasa being atypical for sake part of the turnoff?
No, Aramasa isn’t atypical for sake in any way I know of. It isn’t particularly high acid compared to yamahai or kimoto sakes that actually are. To me it’s just boring. I prefer Jikon, Shichi hon Yari, Shichida, and, obviously, Kikuhime. To name a few.
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I learned something new, thank you. I don’t particularly know that much about sake, but learning more. I’ve had Jikon and like it quite a bit as well, but haven’t tried the others you listed. Will explore more.
I’ve enjoyed Nabeshima and Ubusuna (and Jikon), but am interested in exploring some other producers that are a little easier to buy. I got a bottle of Denshu I’m excited to try.
Had some amazing rieslings at the last #rieslingstudy at Eliza’s in Kingston. Given the insanity of bottles and doing MOC duties I only took brief notes. I usually pick a producer or region to focus my contributions on for the rieslingstudies, this one was the wines of Keller, hence all of the Keller notes. Stephen Bitterolf also brought a 2018 Kiste.
2018 Keller GMAX - Intense but still refined. Not as big as I would have thought for 2018. This was open for 10 hours when I tasted it. A+
2016 Keller GMAX - In a beautiful place. Surprisingly ready to go from the jump. Perfection. A+
2008 Keller Von der Fels - Incredibly beautiful mature, some exotic fruit notes, but still energetic riesling. Age you Von der Fels A+
2018 Keller Absterde - Very good concentration but still elegant and focused. A
2013 Keller RR - This was absolutely jaw dropping stunning. The slight amount of RS has integrated perfectly and it is a harmonious combination of aged tertiary riesling flavors, slight sweetness and acidity. This was a BIG hit amongst a lot of the inexperienced riesling drinkers A++ Boy did the critics get 2013 wrong!!!
2020 Keller Von Der Fels - So elegant and filigreed. Drinking beautifully. A-
2019 Jakob Tennstedt Pear Mutt - Love these wines but they are a bit of a roller coaster. This one was stunning. Crazy floral aromatics - Lilacs, Rose etc. Had that unique low or no sulphur spice character I get in naturalesque rieslings A
2018 Keller Hipping - Absolutely mind-blowing. Just stunning. I wish I could have spent a lot more time with this bottle. A+
2007 Keller Hubacker - Another great example of how the GG’s can age which I / we learn about every year. This was a perfectly aged dry wine with everything in the right place including electric acidity. This has a long life ahead A+
2018 Keller Morstein - As stunning as the Hipping was, the Morstein took it up another notch!!! DAMN!!! A++
2009 Van Volxem Scharzhofberger Pergentsknopp - From magnum. Generously brought by @gavin.f This was a wonderful change of pace from all of the Keller. It really stood apart and had a much different profile. The Magnum format definitely helped. To me it was different because of the unique Saar fruit profile, it was rounder and it had a little less acidity. I really enjoyed it A
1993 Jos. Christoffel jr. Auslese Urziger Würzgarten - I bring a lot of wines to these events. And sadly some don’t get the attention they deserve. It is just the way it goes. Luckily I spotted this floating around in the ice bath late into the evening. The label was almost completely off. I cracked it and BOOM!!! WOW even way too cold this was a stunning wine! I think @gavin.f said it was his wine of the night! A+++
This is about 1/3 of the wines I tried. An unabashed advertisement for all of you to come to a #rieslingstudy!!!
Eliza’s did a wonderful job. And of course Leon Michel’s provided an incredible music backdrop.
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I would have replied to your post earlier, but I was without my laptop in Belgium and Luxembourg over the weekend. Well, what can I say? You are unimpressed by our wines. Over the last several years, you’ve commented on various threads saying that Falkenstein is overhyped and underwhelming, even though you “had some riveting examples, and some boring bottles.”
It’s pretty clear that Falkenstein is not to your taste. You’re not the only one. And that’s fine.
Before Colby deleted his post, he said that Falkenstein, if I recall correctly, often has an off-putting coconut flavor, which he also gets with some wines from Vollenweider and Willi Schaefer. I have no idea what he means.
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What can you say? No need to say anything at all. I have no questions. The wines need no defense. You do a wonderful job of being accessible to people on this board, which I respect. I am sure it is not easy and takes a lot of time.
I post notes that reflect my honest impressions. I am sure you are a professional and know it’s not personal. You are correct that I did once have a very exciting bottle, with @Robert_Dentice , which is what led me to buy what I did. Since then, I have been disappointed. But others love the wines. None of us are wrong, and all notes are of interest.
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I agree. The wines were never (meant to be) “universally loved.”
That said, the 2025 vintage is oversubscribed.
Thanks, Sarah. I appreciate your comment, and you should “post notes that reflect your honest impressions.”
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That’s why I deleted, but I guess you want it to live on 
Oaky Coconut Oil. The only thing I can say for (almost) certain is that I haven’t tasted it from a screw-cap bottle, so perhaps it is something coming from the cork.
It has definitely cemented my preference for screw-cap bottles, as pedestrian as that may be.
I wish I understood but I don’t.
• 2023 Desire Lines Wiley Vineyard Riesling.
Anyone just starting a cellar or interested in value needs to stock up on Desire Lines, who turn in incredible quality at highly competitive pricing. This was no exception: just a great bottle of Riesling.
From CT review:
Dry, plenty of slate, lemon/orange, citrus pith. Racy and intense in the front and back. Mid palate suffers slightly by comparison, not because it’s hollow - it’s not at all — but just because of the blistering attack at each end. Planning on saving other bottles in hopes that this integrates into something special. Impressive and enjoyable as is, with lots of apparent upside. Desire Lines works wonders, making excellence this affordable.
Score: 92 or so, maybe more later. Relative to expectations: ++ for now, maybe the third plus in a couple of years.
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2005 Weingut Josef Leitz Rüdesheimer Berg Roseneck Riesling Spätlese
Not decanted. Third time I have had this wine. This was the best bottle yet but still not as good as the 2002, 2003 or 2004 vintages. This Grand Cru site is known for its expressive fruit and underlying minerality. The Roseneck vineyard is extremely steep. Golden color. The acidity was rather mild but this had excellent depth and a roundness that I found very appealing. Peach, honey and apricot notes. Moderate+ sweetness. 91 points.
VM
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2005 as a vintage continues to underwhelm.
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I don’t have any experience with '05, but I’ve seen many notes that claim it to be an exceptional vintage. Is it typically not at true in practice or is it largely personal preference in this regard