2005 Reinhold Haart Piesporter Goldtropfchen Riesling Auslese Long Goldkapsel Nr 49 (Auction)

A 2005 Piesporter Goldtropfchen Riesling Auslese Long Gold Capsule A.P. #14, slated for auction, smells of pineapple, pink grapefruit, and apricot preserve as well as of a pungently smoky legacy of botrytis. Creamy, smooth, and rich yet amazingly light in touch and subtle in flavor on the palate, it adds flavors of black currant and apple to the themes of pineapple, grapefruit, and apricot fruit, all shadowed by a hint of caramelization and wreathed in floral and herbal distillates. The refined, long finish here preserves both the creaminess and the sense of near-weightlessness that characterized the palate as well as supplying ample portions of lusciously juicy fresh fruit. This astonishingly balanced, terrifically rich, yet almost feather-light Auslese is certainly a 40-year wine that will gain in complexity, though probably not over short intervals. A Beerenauslese and two Trockenbeerenauslesen (one from the Ohligsberg) were still fermenting when I visited! Importer: Rudi Wiest, Cellars International, Carlsbad, CA; tel. 800-596-9463