2008 Graacher Himmelreich Auslese

The Prum’s 2008 Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Auslese is another of their wines this vintage to emphasize floral virtues, here buddleia and rowan, allied in the nose to quince, mint, and anise. Suggestions of salted caramel, malt, white raisin, and honey on the palate point toward the subtle presence of noble botrytis (most of which was picked out for gold capsule bottlings) with hints of citrus rind offering counterpoint. This has a sappy intensity and mouth-filling presence that depart slightly from the extremely delicacy of the majority of wines in the present collection. No doubt it will be worth following for 30-40 years. The Prums compare 2008 with 2004 and as such consider it a classic Spatlese year, with thankfully with more wine in the Kabinett range that this estate has seen in many years. And if you remain unconvinced after tasting the present collection that residually sweet Kabinett Riesling is capable not only of reflecting the full potential of great Mosel vineyard sites but also capable of profundity and greatness per se, then you never will be. The above having been noted, the range of Auslesen here this year, while small, is extraordinary. The 2008 collection also includes January, 2009 Eiswein from the Wehlener Sonnenuhr and Graacher Himmelreich which I did not taste. As in past reports, it should be noted that while there are multiple bottlings of Prum Kabinetts or Spatlesen from a given vineyard in any given vintage, the estate is at pains to insist that the differences are minimal, and I am not privy to the A.P. #s of most non-auction bottlings that I taste there, nor would I pretend to the ability to unerringly match a wine sampled later from a labeled bottle with the specific lot I had tasted previously at the estate. Various importers including: P. J. Valckenberg International, Tulsa, OK; tel. 918 622 0424 and Rudi Wiest, Cellars International, Carlsbad, CA 800 596 9463

The Prum’s 2008 Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Auslese is another of their wines this vintage to emphasize floral virtues, here buddleia and rowan, allied in the nose to quince, mint, and anise. Suggestions of salted caramel, malt, white raisin, and honey on the palate point toward the subtle presence of noble botrytis (most of which was picked out for gold capsule bottlings) with hints of citrus rind offering counterpoint. This has a sappy intensity and mouth-filling presence that depart slightly from the extremely delicacy of the majority of wines in the present collection. No doubt it will be worth following for 30-40 years. ||The Prums compare 2008 with 2004 and as such consider it a classic Spatlese year, with thankfully with more wine in the Kabinett range that this estate has seen in many years. And if you remain unconvinced after tasting the present collection that residually sweet Kabinett Riesling is capable not only of reflecting the full potential of great Mosel vineyard sites but also capable of profundity and greatness per se, then you never will be. The above having been noted, the range of Auslesen here this year, while small, is extraordinary. The 2008 collection also includes January, 2009 Eiswein from the Wehlener Sonnenuhr and Graacher Himmelreich which I did not taste. As in past reports, it should be noted that while there are multiple bottlings of Prum Kabinetts or Spatlesen from a given vineyard in any given vintage, the estate is at pains to insist that the differences are minimal, and I am not privy to the A.P. #s of most non-auction bottlings that I taste there, nor would I pretend to the ability to unerringly match a wine sampled later from a labeled bottle with the specific lot I had tasted previously at the estate.||Various importers including: P. J. Valckenberg International, Tulsa, OK; tel. 918 622 0424 and Rudi Wiest, Cellars International, Carlsbad, CA 800 596 9463 Wine Advocate.February, 2010