Vanessa

8.9

This Riesling hails from Alsace, France, 🇫🇷 more specifically, the Grand Cru vineyard of Osterberg on the softly sloping hillsides of Ribeauville.

The ‘Grand Cru’ designation attached to the vineyard site means, among other things, that the corresponding wine must be made exclusively from a noble variety in Alsace. 👑

Riesling is a noble variety along with Gewurztraminer, Muscat, and Pinot Gris. It is known for its powerful aromatics and wide range in sweetness levels. This is a dry representation with 13.5% ABV. The higher the ABV%, generally speaking (e.g., other than fortified wines), the drier the wine will be, because it means more sugar from the grape has been converted to alcohol in the fermentation process instead of the sugar remaining in the resulting wine.

This wine stands up well to the flavors of the sushi and the high acidity cuts through the fatty fish oils and tempura. 🍱 🍣 The aromas include tart and crisp apple, pear, citrus, honeysuckle, and wet stone. A nice contrast and complement to the umami flavors of the meal.

I have come to learn that I love aromatic wines with sushi, such as Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc. Then again I also love Champagne, Chenin Blanc, and Chablis with sushi. And, of course, sake.

Domaine Andre Kientzler, Riesling, Osterberg, Alsace, Grand Cru, 2016, ABV 13.5%.

Cheers!
— 6 hours ago

with Deked1

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

A rich nose. So intense. Ripe but clean and loads of yellow fruits. Lovely minerality under all that richness. So pure. Gorgeous restraint for the richness. Like a small bite in a Michelin ***. Wow that palate though has that crazy 19 acids in all of Sven’s 19’s. So nice. Sappy, dense and lithe all at the same time. Amazing purity. Such lift. Best vintage for this ever. Just a sick wine. Electric. Nose gets more green tea now with air. Just outrageous complexity. Ridiculous depth. Now the nose is coming into better balance. Layered, floral and complex. This is a stunning wine. Wet stones on the nose. What electricity on the palate. Young and so promising but man what a thrill now. This has structure to burn. Better in 5 years. — 2 days ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.3

Thanks. Deep and very perfumed nose. Vanilla extract, herbs, spice and some apricot. Lifted and energetic nose. Really deep and wafting. Even floral. Palate is ripe, deep and juicy with appealing bitters in the finish. Acid is caressing and woven. Lovely hint of bell pepper on the nose. So good. Elegant, deep and super pure. This is a brilliant Riesling. Incredible texture and sap. What a finish. Almost a 9.4.

— 7 days ago

S.S. Mandani

9.5

Never experienced a bouquet like this before. Kind of like a beachside or lakeside fire pit that’s been extinguished and the sea breeze has humidified everything so that it’s clear and charcoaled dusty at once. A pleasant smokey salinity.

Woke me TF up! This is straight explosion in the taste buds.

Slight smokey undertone with buzzy effervescent acidity. Wild honey and tangerines and a piney zing.

Frankly Wines frankly does it again. Reminds me of a sharper Bloomer Creek bottle of dry Riesling.

It originally caught my attention when Liz at Frankly said it was a sans sulf. I’m glad I took the bait. — a day ago

Aravind A

9.3

Oops, forgot I had this in April. Drank alongside a '14 Roulot Bourg Blanc, and paired with a pasta with morel and scallion (light) cream sauce, with some seared scallops on top. This was far and away the better pairing, but it was fun to contrast the two '14s. With the cream sauce, the perceived acidity was perfect for my palate, so an excellent showing, really showcasing the minerality and citrus. Yeah it's Tuesday, but many pandemic-related restrictions were eased today here in cali. What that actually means remains to be seen... — 2 days ago

Alder Yarrow

Wine Blogger Vinography

9.4

Who doesn’t love that feeling when you point to a wine on the list and the sommelier’s eyes light up and they make an involuntary “ooh” of excitement. This bottle was spectacular tonight and so incredibly youthful for its 15 years. Still showing greenish gold in color and positively vibrating with stony minerality underneath Asian pear and honeysuckle, mandarin orange and star fruit flavors. I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a million times, there’s no better bang for the buck in the wine world than aged Riesling. @weingut_hexamer FTW! — 5 days ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.5

Ahh the glorious Probstey. Actually some fruit on the nose. Lemon. Meyer lemon, spice and expansive minerals. Gorgeous almost cloud like in its purity. Some bitter citrus notes as well. What a palate. Amazing Probstey. So pure, so delicate, so clean. Dense, structured and super nimble but this wine has presence. It walks in a room and you turn around to see who has entered. Unreal nose now. Sicko purity. Bergamot. Almost green tea. So so good. Young and structured but so much going on. Unreal suave structure and almost a tannic backbone. Long. Glides on the palate. Terrific inner mouth aromas. Unreal texture and complexity. Citrus and layers of other citrus. Balance is zen like. Really long, compact and persistent. Seems like it needs to open but my o my is it all there. — 12 days ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.4

I love this wine. One of the most unique and distinctive Rieslings ever. Massively floral and mineral complexity on the nose. Just outrageous. Melon, citrus, spice, tangelo and so lifted. So pure. Nuanced. Superbly elegant and linear with delicious melon/citrus fruit and great inner mouth florals and an awesome fruit skin quality on the finish. So ethereal and pure. Lots of vim and vigor but also a lovely richness to the texture but never betraying its freshness and vivacity. Superb concentration and structure. Amazing depth here. Truly a brilliant wine. I’m sure this will open up and reveal more but really great on the P and P. Great, delicate and long finish. — 5 days ago

Byron C Mayes

9.2

Damn! Star bright gold with yellow-green highlights. Abundant nose and mouthwatering (medium plus plus [sic] acidity) palate of honeyed yellow apples, honeysuckle, cling peach, and fennel(!) with a hint of smoky flint on the moderate finish. Very rich for a Kabinett, but then this is modern day Mosel and (Erben-)Thanisch has shown rich for decades. The Doctor is truly in and this expression of the universal white should satisfy in all situations. Pork dishes are, of course, a natural but your spicier Asian or Cajun fare will thank you just as earnestly. Drink half of your stash now and the rest will reward through 2034 or so. — 5 days ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.4

What a great wine. A brilliant version of this. Lemon oil, huge minerals, some green tea. So delicate and playful. Citrus. Citrus jelly. Really clear and mineral. Huge acid and drive on the palate. Amazing texture. Lime and rock flavors mixed with some killer herbals and bitters. Awesome structure and density but so lithe. Mosel like nimbleness and purity. Just a terrific terrific bottle. Really the biggest revelation of these recent 19 Riesling Tastings. This has just crazy and acidity and freshness. What a finish. Lime sweet tart such mineral drive on this. — 2 days ago