Time is always precious around the time of the auctions in Germany's wine-regions. In September 2008 we went to visit an old friend in
Traben-Trarbach for a short tasting in between all other things. Once again we found ourself on Daniel Vollenweiders kitchen for a tasting
with too short time. Where we tasted through several wines from the 2007-vintage. He started serving a couple of wines from his friends
along with his own trocken.
Wolfer Goldgrube.
Kröver Steffensberg spätlese trocken 2007, Ingmar Püschel
12% alc/vol. Fresh and flowery nose with hints of slate and spices. Dry and flowery riesling in the mouth. Clean and precise. Mineral and
slatey. Fine acidity and length. Good wine and well made.
Schimbock riesling (trocken) 2007, Daniel Vollenweider
13% alc/vol. Wilder and more complex nose. Mineral, citrus, flowers. Earth. Yeast. Almost smells of it's spontaneous fermentation. Dry
and citrusy wine in the mouth with a highly complex minerality. Old-fashioned style. Bigger and more concentrated than the previous wine.
Well balanced alcohol. Great dry Mosel-riesling.
Trabener Kräuterhaus riesling spätlese trocken 2007, Weingut O.
13% alc/vol. A more aromatic flowery nose with hints of spices, citrus and sweetness. The little more residual is noticable especially in
the mouth. Again an old-fashioned style with an added complexity from the spontaneous fermentation. Fine minerality. Good acidity and a
spicy and citrusy finish. Very good and a style I like.
Wolfer Goldgrube riesling spätlese feinherb 2007, AP:03 08
Then we started to taste through Daniels 2007-vintage. The first is the feinherb, which this years comes entirely from a new parcel in the
sub-plot "Jon". Slatey nose with hints of sweet flowers and a touch of honey. Some sweetness in the mouth. Open fruit. Slatey, some flowers.
Fine acidity and citrusy finish. Long and clear finish. Very good feinherb from Vollenweider. Perhaps his finest ever.
Vollenweider riesling spätlese 2007, AP:11 08
80 g/l residual sugar, 8,5 g/l acid. From vines in Kröver Steffensberg. Light colour. Pure slatey nose. Mineral, rainwater-feel. Sweet and
pure wine in the mouth. Citrusy and slatey fruit. Fine, although not the most concentrated wine from Vollenweider. Fine acidity and length.
Very good wine.
Wolfer Goldgrube riesling kabinett 2007, AP:01 08
More flowers in the nose. Some slate and minerality. Not as open as the Vollenweider spätlese. Finer style and fruit in the mouth. It is
a typical Vollenweider kabinett with a fine depth and interesting style. Good acidity backing up the sweetness and giving it a long
pure citrusy taste. One of his better kabinetts. Very good.
Wolfer Goldgrube riesling spätlese 2007, AP:02 08
90 g/l residual sugar, 7,8 g/l acid. Riper nose. Sweet flowers. Slate. Bigger and sweeter wine in the mouth. Still maintains a slimness
with it's fine and crisp acidity. Pure and fine fruit. Flowery, sweet, slate-notes. Good acidity and citrusy finish. Good length. Very
good.
Wolfer Goldgrube riesling spätlese Portz 2007, AP:05 08
Slightly raisiny nose, more auslese-like ripeness. Hints of flowers, citrus, slate. Fullbodied in the mouth. Sweet and a more raisiny
character. Slatey and fine mineral depth. Crisp acidity and a fine long finish with hints of dry-extract. Great wine.
Wolfer Goldgrube riesling spätlese Reiler 2007, AP:06 08
A touch fruiter and greener aromas. Flowery, slatey, citrus. Hints of minerality. A bit fatter style in the mouth with more opulent fruit.
Hints of tropical elements and sweet flowers. Fine mineral depth. Fine crisp acidity and some spritz. Sweeter feel on the finish. Fine
depth and a more opulent style than the Portz. Equally great wine, but different.
Wolfer Goldgrube riesling spätlese goldkapsel 2007, AP:07 08
From a parcel in the Wolfer Sonnenuhr. The nose is a bit closed and reductive. Some slatey hints. Ripe and sweet wine in the mouth with a
lightly honeyed element. Pure riesling with a good mineral depth and great and slim structure. A bit closed with great potensial. Crisp
and long finish. Fine acidity. Great wine and better potensial than both Portz and Reiler.
Shimbock riesling 2007, AP: 12 08
More complex nose. Spontaneous, almost a little stinky. Obvious botrytis-notes. More old-fashioned and open style. Sweet, dark fruity and
great complexity. Earthy elements. Dry extract on the finish, even some tannins. A different animal. Not as pure, but more complex. Great
wine.
Wolfer Goldgrube riesling auslese lange goldkapsel 2007, AP:08 08
From a blend of parcels. 230 g/l residual sugar. 8,7 g/l acid. Golden colour. Honeyed nose. Sweet flowers. Pure style. Very sweet riesling
in the mouth. Lots of sweetness, but not much botrytis evident. Fine and round style. Honeyed fruit. 100% botrytised, but not that much
evident aromatically. Clean and transparent style. Crisper style and not too thick. Tremendous wine.
Wolfer Goldgrube riesling beerenauslese 2007
200 oechsle. 180 liters made. Golden colour. Sweeter nose with hints of apricot, raisins, darker notes. More evident botrytis. A lot
thicker wine in the mouth than the auslese LGK. Raisiny botrytised character. Almost a "salty"/mineral depth. Fine fruit. Complex and
interesting. Long taste with fine and refreshing acidity showing. Tremendous wine.
2007 is yet another excellent vintage for Daniel Vollenweider. He always seems to make wines with a fine and pure intensity, which is
what you often find in 2007. With the structure and fine crisp acidity that the vintage also brings this accompanies the sweetess in
Vollenweiders wines in an excellent balance. So the wines are sweet, pure and mineral and with crisp acidity and a long taste. It is also
a vintage that clearly shows the differencies in wine-making-techniques between the wines from Wolfer Goldgrube and the Shimbock. The first
so pure and clear in style. The latter more complex. Favorites include the dry Shimbock, the Wolfer Goldgrube spätlese goldkapsel and the
great and interesting beerenauslese.
Arnt Egil Nordlien
Tasting note: Sep-08
