Weingut Emrich-Schonleber Monzinger Halenberg Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, Nahe, Germany

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Picked out from the material for their “regular” Auslese, the Schonlebers’ 2009 Monzinger Halenberg Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese pushes the confectionary aspects of the former wine to a delectable extreme. Salted caramel, butter cream, marzipan, hazelnut paste, honey, and vanilla are mingled with glazed pineapple, preserved mango, date, sultana, and candied citrus rind. The combination of textural creaminess and overall opulence with near weightless buoyancy is absolutely uncanny. Fermentations tend to finish quickly chez Schonleber, but even against that background, it’s amazing that the 40 liters of elixir in question gave up converting further sugar already in early January, and at only 6% alcohol. “We started out with more like a hundred liters,” explains Frank Schonleber, “but by the time you get done handling something like this and getting it through the special mini-filter we have for this purpose, not much is left.” This feather-light, confectionary libation draws a sense of primary juiciness from somewhere that irresistibly calls forth the next sip. It makes quite a contrast with the Schonleber’s 2003, which they said they had not tasted in several years and insisted on opening alongside. That 2003 is so palpably dense; so maritime (seemingly suffused with salt, alkaline, and kelp); and – despite its huge residual sugar – at 8% so much higher in alcohol, that it performs like wine of an entirely different category. Either of these, though, will surely be worth following for at least half a century, meaning that most of us ought to leave some for our wine-loving heirs.Werner and Frank Schonleber harvested through nearly the entire month of October, and noted that levels of sugar and total acidity remained fairly constant, while flavors kept improving and malic acid diminishing in favor of tartaric. Speaking of improving, it’s hard for these two vintners to much-improve their by now phenomenal batting average, but no Riesling lover is likely to suffer the least disappointment by buying bottles of Emrich-Schonleber 2009s. Especially at its dry end, this is a collection to describe which seems to call for an extended mineral vocabulary that doesn’t even exist in English or German! And in nobly sweet echelons, the small amount of Riesling the Schonlebers rendered is strikingly successful and informed by an ample if mysterious measure of sheer juiciness. About the absence of Eiswein, Frank Schonleber notes: “We had the feeling that ripeness had simply advanced too far in 2009 to justify leaving any grapes hanging in anticipation of frost.”Imported by Sussex Wine Merchants, Moorestown, NJ; tel. (856) 608 9644; also imported by Dee Vine Wines, San Francisco, CA tel. (877) 389- 9463

Pale golden yellow. Very rich aromas of white peach, grapefruit and oyster shell on a bed of smoky botrytis. The sumptuous passion fruit extract is perfectly complemented by delicate saline acidity. Pure, refined and wonderfully vibrant on the palate-staining finish. This understated, near-perfect wine is one of the greats of the vintage