2006 Brauneberger Juffer Sonnenuhr Spatlese

The 2006 Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Spatlese A.P. #7 adds richness and peachy intensity vis a vis the corresponding Juffer, boasts an overtly honeyed, slick, glossy texture, and is superbly balanced. Its generously ripe, soothing, salt-tinged finish lacks however the complexity or remarkable balance of the Juffer. As Haag points out, this needs time. In ten years, it might be worth comparing them again, as this wine may have more to say. Certainly it should keep well for at least 25 years. Oliver and Wilhelm Haag have fielded their third sensational collection in a row, but then, superlatives are hardly new to this address, there are simply more of them this year then ever before. Wilhelm Haag compares 2006 with 1953 – a fabled vintage he remembers helping to harvest as a teenager – for its “desiccated, incredibly healthy botrytis,” adding “I plan to drink these in my second life.” They started picking immediately after October 3, and when I asked Wilhelm Haag whether a particular bottling had been picked early, he laughed and replied “they were all picked early! When I saw the must weights that were coming in, I thought they were too high for Spatlese and even Auslese, and that the wines would be too broad, but I must say, today – even with the botrytis – they have a wonderfully elegant effect.” Importer: Rudi Wiest, Cellars International, Carlsbad, CA; tel. (800) 5960-9463