St. Urbans-Hof’s 2008 Piesporter Goldtropfchen Riesling Spatlese A.P. #16 smells of candied grapefruit and orange rind mingled with caramel. With a subtle sense of creaminess such as possessed by many of the estate’s 2007s but fewer of its 2008s, this at the same time refreshes and cleanses the palate with ripe, effective acids, honey and caramel dovetailing beautifully on the palate with citrus. Proprietor Nik Weis insists there was very little botrytis here, but however much it appeared at harvest to be, it certainly shows in the taste, Alkaline and wet stone accents offer contrast and counterpoint in a generous, soothing finish. I suspect this is going to be best enjoyed over the next 7-10 years, a shorter span than one would normally associate with this Pradikat, site, and type of vintage. Sankt Urbans-Hof, notes proprietor Nik Weis, experienced a good ten degrees Oechsle difference in 2008 between its ripest Saar fruit – bottled as Spatlese – and that of the Mosel, which reached Auslese level even without stringent selection of botrytis fruit. “We find this a terrific vintage,” remarks Weis – who compares its style with 1998 – “inasmuch as at long last we again have the clear differentiation between Kabinett as it should be, Spatlese, and ennobled Auslese.” Remarkably, there is only a single trocken bottling here this year (from Mehring) which I did not taste and which was destined for the Landhaus Sankt Urban restaurant of Weis’s sister and brother-in-law.Importer: H. B. Wine Merchants, New York, NY; tel. (917)-402-0456