We went to Bullay to visit the cellars of Weingut Stein in an attempt to explore some of the more unknown wines of the lower Mosel. This was a recommendation from Stuart Pigott. For those that don’t know Weingut Stein, this is two brothers; Peter and Ulrich Stein that work together. They own separate vineyards, make and bottle the wines separately, but release their wine under the same label of Weingut Stein. Peter (Wein-Erbhof) makes wines from the St.Aldegund-einzellagen Klosterkammer, Himmelreich, Palmberg-Terrassen and from Bremmer Calmont and Erdener Treppchen and makes wines in all styles. Ulrich (Haus Waldfrieden) owns vines in Alfer Hölle, Neefer Frauenberg, Bremmer Calmont and Ürziger Würzgarten and makes only trocken wines.
We tasted through a few wines from different vineyards with Peter Stein and I must say that I found the quality generally very good and pure. With the St.Aldegunder Palmberg-Terrassen and Bremmer Calmont giving the most interesting wines. Prices were generally low for the quality.
St.Aldegunder Klosterkammer riesling kabinett trocken 2004 (Wein-Erbhof)
84 Oechsle, 10,4% alc., 6 g/L rs. Price 6,- Euro.
Uncomplicated style, but finely tuned. Light, clean and refreshing dry riesling. Some mineral.
St.Aldegunder Himmelreich riesling kabinett halbtrocken 2004 (Wein-Erbhof)
85 Oechsle, 10,2% alc., 16 g/L rs. Price 6,-E.
More elegant style. More floral and more slate. Slight sweetness. Rounder style. A bit more interesting. Peter says the Himmelreich has more slate than the Klosterkammer, is steeper and makes more elegant wines. I tend to agree with him.
St.Aldegunder Palmberg-Terrassen riesling spätlese halbtrocken 2001 (Wein-Erbhof)
94 Oechsle, 11,2% alc., 16 g/L rs. Price 8,- E.
Much more interest in this wine. More mineral and complexity. Structured in the mouth. Medium bodied and long citrusy finish. Greatly balanced halbtrocken. Needs a little more time. Very interesting and cheap for the price. From a terrased piece of the Palmberg-einzellagen quite high above the Mosel.
Bremmer Calmont riesling spätlese trocken 2003 (Haus Waldfrieden)
97 Oechsle, 12 % alc., 8 g/L rs. Price 9,-E.
More powerful style here. Honeyed fruit, ripe, but not too ripe. Thick in the mouth with lower acids, but well-balanced. Interesting and mineral. An impressive trocken from the difficult 2003-vintage from the steepest of all vineyards.
Alfer Hölle riesling qualitätswein**** 2003 (Haus Waldfrieden)
102 Oechsle, 12,4% alc., 17 g/L. rs., Price 10,-E.
The only wine from Ulrich Stein not classified as trocken. More concentration. Gives an intense nose, that shows some earth and flowers. Powerful in the mouth with lots of extract. Lower acids, but well-balanced again. But not as interesting fruit. More earthy and straight-forward. Not my favorite. This is a vineyard that lies beneath the Haus Waldfrieden and is entirely owned by Ulrich Stein. Soil has less slate and it needs a warm year to ripen this well.
Ürziger Würzgarten riesling qualitätswein*** trocken 2003 (Haus Waldfrieden)
95 Oechsle, 11,9% alc., 8 g/L rs, Price 8,-E.
A fruity and slightly spicy dry wine with medium acids and decent balance. Not a very interesting ÜW.
St.Aldegunder Palmberg-Terrassen riesling auslese 2001 (Wein-Erbhof)
107 Oechsle, 11,5%, 53 g/L rs, Price 13,-E (0,5L).
Golden colour. Sweet, honeyed nose. Some botrytise. Some more mature notes like forest floor. Fine balance. Full-bodied auslese slightly on the rustic side. Long citrusy finish. The alcohol is nicely integrated. Quite interesting wine, that probably will age well.