1999 Rudi Pichler Riesling Weissenkirchner Achleiten Smaragd
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A massive 14% alcohol with the trademark Achleiten nose and yet, amazingly, it's in balance. There is quite enough tension and acidity and this would make a great, if very slightly exaggerated, drink now. Very long. This would be a terrifying introduction to this wine style because it's so potent but it should please cognoscenti. The finish is not the purest. (JR)
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Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Pierre Rovani
More reviews and scores
The 1999 Riesling Smaragd Achleiten, sporting 14% natural alcohol, offers earth, clay, and wet gravel aromas. It is armed with the velvety-texture generally found only in the finest red wines. This is an expansive, palate-coating behemoth. Bergamots (the pear-shaped orange that is used to flavor Earl Grey tea), pears, candied lemons, and spiced apples are found in this medium-bodied, broad wine's extensive personality. Anticipated maturity: Now-2014+. Importer: Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700
Expressive lemon and white flower aromas are found in the nose of the 1999 Riesling Smaragd Weissenkirchner Achleiten. This medium-bodied, expansive, and admirably focused wine is spicy, filled with minerals, quinine, and red/white berries. Satin-textured and intricate, it is full-flavored, elegant, and admirably persistent. Drink this wine over the course of the next 8-10 years. Importer: Vin Divino, Chicago, IL; tel. (773) 334-6700.
Peach and lemon rind scents. Voluminous, rich, honeyed, leesy and slatey: a wine to strain through one teeth. Tastes a bit like a marriage of Meursault and Mosel. There are nearly ten grams of acid here, but also 14.5% alcohol and a complex rockslide of a finish.