Just about any French vineyard owner will talk terroir given the opportunity, but no one argues the case for terroir more passionately than Marcel Deiss. Should any readers be traveling to Alsace, Deiss is definitely a man worth visiting. All of his wines exhibit distinctive personalities. Riesling is king at the Deiss estate, although I note my highest ratings are often awarded to his other wines. Nevertheless, these Rieslings are classics in the austere, dry, mineral-dominated style. The two Rieslings from the Schoenenbourg vineyard are typical of a young Alsatian Riesling from this prized vineyard. Both are extremely closed, dominated by their stony/mineral component, and backward to the point of frightful austerity. One senses a smoky, ground mineral component in each wine, as well as weight and ripeness, but they are unyielding and tight. Deiss, not to mention his importer, will undoubtedly consider my point scores to be absurdly low, but both wines require 4-5 years of cellaring. They will undoubtedly behave like serious red wines in terms of their aging curves. Importer: Robert Kacher Selections, Washington, DC; tel. (202) 832-9083