Egon Muller - Scharzhof Le Gallais Wiltinger Braune Kupp Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel, Mosel, Germany

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The deeply-golden, auctioned 2007 Wiltinger Braune Kupp Riesling Auslese Gold Capsule - almost needless to say, like its Scharzhofberger counterpart the only wine of this name, so that reference to A.P.#s is unnecessary - perpetuates the peaty smokiness and singed-edge fruit character of the -regular- Scharzhofberger Auslese and that reminds me of the vintage character of 1969 (wines I however first experienced when they were 15 years old). A nose of vanilla, rowan, and almond extract, along with prickly pungency signaling botrytis sets the tone for an undeniably unusual combination of tart fruit skin and firm citricity; incipient caramelization, caramel- and vanilla-tone; quinine, alkaline, and cyanic bitterness; and singed, smoky pungency. I find this both strikingly invigorating and fascinatingly complex; but it isn't a case of youthful harmony or visions of eternal repose. (I received several reports of concern from friends who tasted this wine at the Trier auctions only a few days after I sampled it, concerning the quality and aggressiveness of its botrytis character.) I expect this to prove long lived and persistently dynamic, but certainly it represents - however remarkably - a Riesling still in the process of self-realization. The still-refreshing and still-smoky as well as supremely elegant, even delicate 1969 Wiltinger Braune Kupp feine Auslese tasted superb on this occasion. But it is a wine that today would be bottled as Spatlese. Egon Muller finds merit in the comparison of 2008 with 1988 - or perhaps, as I suggested of his collection specifically, to 1969, a vintage with which, as he pointed out, the youthful 1988s were frequently compared. He notes that -half the 2008 harvest became Kabinett, and most of the rest Q.b.A.- but most of these Kabinetts would have been classified a grade higher in the, for its time, -classic Spatlese vintage- of 1988. That said, Muller and his team - who, unlike most of their Saar neighbors in search of a balance of dry and nobly sweet wines, do not spray against botrytis in summer - managed some superb selective harvesting this year, for which, he relates -the last week in October was the best time. At the end of October, it rained a bit again, and the botrytis was no longer so good. And that's why there is so little nobly sweet wine this year.- Apropos Kabinett, Muller takes a dim view of creeping residual sugar in wines so-labeled - confessing that he did not prove immune to that temptation - and is now bottling in the 30-35 gram range. He is always at pains to point out that he views and styles such wines in the manner traditionally associated with so-called Naturwein rather than in a manner especially associated with capital--K- Kabinett. Nonetheless, 2008 is one vintage where the Muller Kabinett bottlings exhibit precisely the delicacy that many of us consider the essence of that post-1971 category. For the most part, these 2008s - which, as a group, constitute a summit of their vintage - were bottled significantly later than the estate norm. (As always, Muller wines from his monopole Braune Kupp are bottled under the Le Gallais label.)Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, New York, NY (212) 355 0700