Pre-selected from the Falkenlay and Fahrlay prior to the harvest of the Auslese in those sites, Busch’s 2006 Pundericher Marienburg Riesling Auslese Gold Capsule combines pungently musky, spicy, citrus rind aromatics with the floral-herbal distillate suggestions familiar from the Fahrlay Auslese. Musky, meaty manifestations of noble rot manifest themselves throughout this elixir, which despite its sheer thickness possessed of a delicacy and lift that remind me of this year’s outstanding Kabinett and Spatlese. Furthermore, this handles its sweetness better than several of the Auslesen here today. The finish is soft and oozing rather than in any sense gripping, suggesting honey- and brown spice-dipped, over-ripe musk melon and candied citrus rind. Perhaps this wants 12 years to slim down and 12 more to really enjoy? I cannot pretend to tell. Clemens Busch farms the steep slopes of the once-famous Pundericher Marienburg on the Lower Mosel entirely organically, which make him unique in the region and a source of wonder for his fellow vintners. Most of his top wines are labeled with their old pre-1971 site names. (Increasingly many growers are managing to get away with this.) Busch has been bottling nobly sweet Riesling since 1999, but never before – he hastens to inform me – in quantities remotely like those that nature imposed on him in 2006: Nine Auslesen, three Beerenauslesen, and a T.B.A.! Like Reinhard Lowenstein (and in a similar style), Busch is best-known inside Germany for his dry (or near-dry) single-site wines, which are not released for more than a year after harvest. (In fact, most of the 2006s had not finished fermenting yet when I visited last summer.)Mosel Wine Merchant selections (various importers), Trier, Gemany; fax 011 49 (0)651-14551 39; also imported by by Ewald Moseler Selections, Portland OR; tel. 888-274-4312