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Germany Pre-Auctions Report: Trier and Bad Kreuznach
featured, Germany
, Sep 2023
The VDP’s two regional auctions in Trier and Bad Kreuznach in September are key dates for Riesling collectors. I was invited to attend pre-auction tastings held by the producers over the summer ahead of the auctions themselves. This article explains how these auctions work, but far more detail on the vintage and wineries will be in the respective regional reports covering Rheinhessen & Nahe and Mosel, Saar & Ruwer.
Cellar Favorite: Famille Hugel - The 2015 Riesling Séléctions de Grains Nobles S and 2014 Riesling Grossi Laüe
France: Alsace, cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites
, Jul 2023
Jean-Frédéric Hugel paid a brief visit to London to launch a brace of late-release Rieslings. One from the 2014 vintage, from their top site Grand Cru Schoenenbourg. While the 2015 has already been released, this is the first vintage in which Hugel finally uses the grand cru designation rather than their Alsatian dialect term Grossi Laüe.
2021 Mosel and Saar – Tantalizing, Tingling, Thrilling
featured, germany: Mosel, Germany: Saar
, Jun 2023
The best dry 2021s from Mosel and Saar offer incredible clarity, poise and longevity. The top off-dry and sweet wines are analytics-defying tightrope acts, teetering between electric sharpness and fruity allure drawn mostly across the entire citrus spectrum. A long, cool growing season meant full aromatic development alongside pine-tingling acidity. It is a vintage for true Riesling hounds and those who delight in the deliciously bracing drama on the palate that only Riesling can offer.
Alsace 2021s and 2020s – A Late Arrival in the Pinot Noir Pantheon
featured, France: Alsace
, Apr 2023
At long last, Alsace Pinot Noirs are coming to the fore. Hectares under vine are steadily increasing, and so is grower expertise. Some producers are veterans in teasing complex, elegant and expressive wines from this much-loved grape variety. Others are just starting. Pinot Noir is one of the most exciting developments in Alsace, and there are other varietal experiments, too.
Alsace 2020s and 2021s: Just like Janus
featured, France: Alsace
, Apr 2023
Two fundamentally different vintages, the hot 2020 and the problematic 2021, form the basis of my first Alsace report for Vinous. It turns out that the best producers came up with some stunning wines – negotiating and countering the heat in 2020 and sorting, sorting, sorting to produce exceptional wines with a wonderful acidic backbone in 2021, a year beset by mildew.