Spicy and fresh-tasting, with well-concentrated flavors of citrus, melon and pear supported by lively acidity. Finishes with focus and intense creaminess, lingering with notes of tarragon. Drink now through 2035. 28 cases imported.??–KM??Region: Germany / Rheinhessen Select to Add

From that portion of this site whose surrender to botrytis proved noble, Kruger-Rumpf's 2011 Binger Scharlachberg Riesling Spatlese smells of soursop, resin and overripe honeydew melon, which then inform a broad, oily, moderately juicy mid-palate. Hints of citrus pip and rind bitterness serve to extend and to push back against the sweetness of a sustained finish. While this suffers in direct comparison with the corresponding Dautenpflanzer, it should prove lovely over at least the next dozen years. Stefan and Georg Rump have collaborated on a strong 2011 collection, confirming the impression that two generations are better than one and that some of the best wines in many years or perhaps ever are nowadays issuing from this estate. But I can't help pointing out that, just as was so often the case two decades and more ago, the most expressive bottlings this year have turned out to be ones harboring significant residual sugar. "You had to get started picking at some point- before the end of September, opines young Georg Rumpf, "or you were liable to lose too much acidity and arrive at too much alcohol especially for basic Riesling. The grapes looked good, they tasted good ... a woman is nine months pregnant" - the equivalence to 100 days grape gestation?! - "and then it's time for a child to come into the world. In the event, we harvested for relatively long, almost until the end of October.- (I was unable to devote time on this occasion to tasting Kruger-Rumpf's multiple bottlings of Silvaner, Pinot Blanc, or Pinot Noir - there were, after all, already two dozen bottles on the table and a tight schedule to keep - though these often merit attention.)Importer: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300

For the second year running, the Rumpfs essayed no vineyard-designated dry wine from the Binger Scharlachberg, and their lean, rather bitter Binger Riesling trocken (effectively declassified Scharlachberg) was little more than marginally recommendable; yet, a 2010 Binger Scharlachberg Riesling Spatlese showed off the residually sweet potential of this great Rheinhessen site, as had its 2009 counterpart. Luscious lime and pineapple sorbet laced with floral perfume, nut oils, and an irresistibly mouthwatering saline savor akin to raw scallop and browned butter lend this polished, long-finishing Riesling from botrytis-tinged berries a combination of charm and intrigue unsurpassed in the present collection. (And at 80 grams of residual sugar – well down from the level of this year’s Dautenpflanzer – surely this is more than sweet enough.) I would project a fine 15 or more year future for this beauty. Stefan and Georg Rumpf’s 2010 collection was one of those, whose stubbornly-dry trocken Rieslings more than just occasionally tended toward an angularity, bitterness, and tartness that I doubt they will entirely outgrow. The Rumpfs de-acidified selectively, sometimes in must and sometimes to young wine. Skin contact was favored as a check on acids, though that may arguably have reinforced bitterness. Bottling times were pushed back by about a month, though in the context of such late harvest that means essentially the usual length of elevage. Incidentally, I found the Rumpf’s two 2009 Spatburgunder bottlings to have been diminished by the quality of barriques employed and/or the wine’s length of exposure to wood, specifically by faintly rancid overtones and a tendency toward drying in the finish.Importer: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300

Suggestions of strawberry and sassafras in the nose of the Kruger-Rumpf 2008 Binger Scharlachberg Riesling Spatlese resemble a cross between Urziger Wurzgarten and Erdener Treppchen. Suggestions of smoked meat however point to the wine’s actual origins in Permian sandstone. This is succulently satisfying but less outgoing or impeccably-balanced than the corresponding Dautenpflanzer. Still, it has at least 12-15 year evolutionary potential, and during that time may well have its more expressive and focused periods. The Rumpfs seem in 2008 to have had to struggle less to avoid the greenness that was observed in certain of their 2007s. “There was just nothing you could do this year,” comments Georg Rumpf, “except let the fruit hang a long time on the vine.”Importer: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300

Lush and juicy, sporting peach, nectarine and grapefruit notes. It's all pulled together by the vibrant acidity, as this unfolds on the palate to a long conclusion. Drink now through 2024.??–BS??Region: Germany / Rheinhessen Select to Add