2009 Riesling Reserve

Spicy, crisp and stacked on the palate – layered lime fruit and really focused, punchy weight on the palate. Very little development at this age: cellar well for some time! (RH)

Coming as usual from overwhelmingly estate fruit grown on chalk-clay in Ribeauville and Bergheim, the Trimbach 2009 Riesling Reserve weighs in at slightly lower alcohol than its “classic” counterpart, the less expensive cuvee which – also as usual – served as a repository for any lots deemed unworthy to include in this Reserve. Fresh lime suffused with chalk, peat, toasted pumpkin seed, fruit pits, and herbs makes for a pithy, piquant, palpably extract-rice impression one would not usually anticipate from 2009 – other than at this address! The cut and concentration comes out impressively in the finish, with the bitter elements mitigated by sheer refreshment. One ought to be able to find excellent uses for this over the next 5-7 years, and quire possibly longer. That said, its relative generosity – certainly vis-a-vis its 2008 counterpart – renders the winery’s having released it early – at the beginning of this year – explicable. “The oenologists were saying in 2009 ‘Oh we have to get approval so that we can add acidity,’ but it was absolutely unnecessary, for us,” notes Pierre Trimbach, who indeed delivered a surprisingly animated collection, albeit one diminished in size by instances of declassification. The Trimbachs compare their 2008s with 1998, adding that there is something of 2001 to them, too. As a group, they are going to further the reputation of wines from this family for rewarding patience. Importer: Esprit Du Vin French Wine Merchants & Select European Estates, 48 Harbor Park Drive, Port Washington, NY 11050; www.edvwines.com

Pale bright yellow. Very closed on the nose, hinting at lemon peel and menthol. Then fairly rich and silky but quite dry; deeper than the basic bottling and full for this cuvee Still a tad warm on the back, but here the alcohol makes its presence known a bit later, as the wine has more supporting texture.