2011 Scharzhofberger Spatlese

Deeply luscious peach near its core is tinged with the piquancy of its pit; pungent lime rind and fresh ginger; as well as maritime salinity and alkalinity, on the wafting and delicate nose and palate of Muller’s 2011 Scharzhofberger Riesling Spatlese A.P. #4. The integration of nippy botrytis – like the measure of residual sugar here – is perfectly judged; and the combination of textural creaminess with delicacy; infectious juiciness; vivacity; and invigorating impingement of zest, spice and mineral elements is downright uncanny. The merest hint of white raisin in this beauty’s long, brightly tingling finish – like its faintly prickly spiciness – points to the ennobling if subtle presence of botrytis. The degree of focus, incisiveness and interactivity on exhibit here is rare for the vintage. Look for profound pleasure through at least 2035. Egon Muller’s 2011 collection – tasted last September at the Scharzhof in his absence – represents an intensively selective harvest that extended from mid-October into November and resulted in one of the numerically smallest number of individual bottlings in the history of this venerable estate smaller even than the number from 20100, but also some that will go down as landmarks in that history. It seems that – by way of explaining this paucity – in the realm of Kabinett and Spatlese, the individual lots were simply deemed to harmonize well with one another and amalgamated; while in upper-Pradikat realms, the aggregate volume was no larger than in other recent vintages. Importer: Frederick Wildman & Sons, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700