2021 Niersteiner Hipping Grosses Gewachs
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Tasting notes
Rowan, iris, basil, mint, apple and white peach combine for an irresistibly enticing aromatic display, high-toned and penetrating as if from a distillate. The inner-mouth impression is glossy, liqueur-like in its sense of herbal, floral and fruit concentration, with coriander seed and orange rind contributing to a gin-like impression. The finish projects an almost electric vibrancy as well as a smoky aura to accompany its reverberating reprise of the flavors that went before. This vividly illustrates Keller’s ideal of a dry Riesling whose remarkable sheer intensity and “inner density” is nevertheless unincumbered by weight – quite the contrary – and entirely consistent with a projection of nuanced complexity. As it takes on air, the wine becomes that much more expressive, suggesting the thrills that await with further bottle age. (Though I certainly couldn’t reconcile its irresistibility today with a “drinking window” that doesn’t begin for years. It’s only circumstances extrinsic to the wine itself – like the effort you will have gone to if you manage to secure even one bottle! – that will no doubt leave you determined to cellar it.)
Critic scores
Average Score
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
Giant stone fruit aromas, but everything remains so fine and bright. As silky and as delicate as it is concentrated, this literally takes your breath away. Such a wonderful raciness and a slatey minerality that must be tasted to be believed. Drink or hold.
Basket-pressed, therefore some skin contact in the press. Cask sample. Lifted and peachy like the Hipping Kabinett. Creamy, honeyed and so inviting. There’s something a little oily and spicy here that I would not expect on such a young wine, as if the slow ripening had developed more mature aromas even before the fruit was picked. But also a smoky note of a young wine. This wine seems to take you round and round in circles, so many facets that need time to be discovered. Intensely spicy, almost sour on the palate. Powerful but not charming, demands your entire attention. Long and salty/sour in its freshness on the finish. Give this plenty of time. (JH)
About the producer
Based in the Rheinhessen, Keller is one of the finest Riesling producers in the world, and has set the benchmark for German Pinot Noir.