9.6% A/V

AP Nr 2 576 510 10 77

Incredible deep bright burnished yellow gold colour. Lavish, intimidating but still amazingly fresh nose of super concentrated, coconut-coated and honey-dipped yellow peaches, apricots and nectarines with undertones of ripe naval oranges, concentrated lime juice and poached green pears. Wow! The more this unctuous bouquet opens out, the more it delivers. Ripe tropical fruits lurk as an embellishing top note and subliminal hints of pink grapefruit pith and lemon curd add phenomenal counterbalance. There’s a spicy botrytis aspect which heightens the sense of greatness and an eerie slaty minerality I associate with this vineyard. In the mouth the wine is initially as lush, sweet and almost as syruppy as I can manage and then, almost magically, transforms into something perfectly manageable and ultimately drinkable as the citrussy acidity cuts in to provide a proper sense of delineation, focus and balance. The opulent flavours are an instant replay of those found in the bouquet. The finish is naturally full, rich without the slightest suggestion of cloying and of tremendous length. I’m loathe to hazard a guess as to how long this will last in a good cellar but it smells and tastes of considerable longevity. I rate it 95 points. A truly memorable and auspicious tasting.

A.P. nr. 2 577 050 20 84 7.3% A/V

This most remarkable offering from Fritz Haag must rate as one of the most compelling German Riesling’s I’ve had the pleasure of trying in my twenty-five years of serious wine drinking. Admittedly, my exposure, to date, of the great estates, vineyards and the best vintages has been less than stellar, but with this particular wine, such is its beauty, composure and completeness and with its almost inbuilt sense of indelibility, deserves every point of the 95 I’ve given it tonight.

The colour belies its considerable age - a very healthy bright light gold. The bouquet holds a beguiling mix of freshly squeezed lime, lemon zest, white peach, yellow nectarine and mandarin intertwined with a flinty minerality, river pebbles, a touch of honey and a whisper of wet clay. There’s not the slightest suggestion petrol or apricot kernel - an amazing feat! In the mouth the wine reaches another plateau - gorgeously delineated, fresh, silky and rounded, filling every portal with exquisite flavours of lime, ripe Packham pear, nectarine, crisp newly picked apple, redcurrant and a suggestion of cassis all wrapped in a shroud of impeccable mineral-tinged refreshing, crisp acidity that leads to a morish sweet and sour finish of great authority and length. Such are the seemingly immortal powers of this wine, I would predict a drinking window from now to something approaching 2023. Any of the resident German Riesling gurus can correct me on my possibly outlandish assertion but I’m happy to hold a few of these back for some time to see if my prediction holds true.

A. P. nr. 3 551 083-19-84 A/V 7.7%

I recently opened a TCA-affected bottle of this and thought it only fit and proper I drag another from the cellar for reconsideration.

Beguiling youthful colour of bright light gold with a gorgeous flash of green as you raise the glass to the light. Delicate, but intriguing, still quite floral bouquet of honey, minerals, overripe honey-dew melon, waxy apple, nectarine and just a touch of spice, smoke and petrol - still relatively fresh and invigorating. Perhaps not in the first tier but awfully good all the same. The palate marches to the beat of a very similar drum - silky in the mouth but with an intense honeyed richness, not a great amount of cleansing acidity but just enough to maintain focus and counterbalance. Flavours of honey-dipped ripe nectarine, baked Granny Smith apples, a touch of minerale and hint of petrol round off a very attractive, fully mature Saar Riesling that may have been better several years ago. The finish is most impressive with terrific lingering honeyed stone fruit flavours. 90 points (Excellent) from me today. This is definitely a drink now proposition.

My first try of this Piesport producer, this wine from the great first growth “Domherr” vineyard. 7.5% A/V. The bright light gold colour is followed by a heavily sulphured bouquet that persists even with extended swirling and plenty of air time just sitting in the glass, virtually swamping whatever fruit that may be waiting underneath. Bummer! Eventually, I was able to coax some beautiful honeyed, slaty peach and nectarine fruit - four hours after the wine was opened. Thankfully the palate is a thing of great beauty and deserves special commendation, dancing in the mouth with a melange of perfectly-judged, ripe stone and citrus fruits of white peach, nectarine, pear, orange, crisp green apple and a touch of redcurrant. Displaying great purity and immaculate weight, the balancing mineral-laden acidity provides the perfect foil to the wonderful sweet fruit, leaving this taster begging for more after every sip. With a crisp, long, authoritative finish that coats the mouth this wine may just need extra bottle age for the sulphur found in the nose to peter out for something very special to emerge. The palate is truly Outstanding and worthy of any German Riesling fan’s attention. 91 points for now. I’ll leave the other bottle in the cellar for several years and hopefully my prayers (for the bouquet to improve) may be answered. Drink 2011-2018.