Tasting Notes
Wine Advocate 100
Here comes a jump, noted Molitor as he poured his 2011 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese three star – a wine, incidentally, that will definitely be offered by their U.S. importer – and I have to admit to wondering where we could jump to after the remarkable Urziger just tasted. I got my answer in a hurry, and it isn t merely a jump in Oechsle and botrytis influence that Molitor had in mind! A fascinating amalgam of quinine, green tea, heliotrope, white raisin, maraschino, almond and pistachio extracts rises penetratingly and seductively from the glass, then reconvenes for a palate performance at once creamy, almost buttery in texture and electric in its bright, mouthwatering citricity. White peach syrup, quince preserves, and grapefruit mingle with salted caramel, nut pastes, as well as liqueur-like floral and herbal essences at distilled concentration for which the analogy to Chartreuse is almost insultingly inadequate, against a subtle but insistent background of wet stone, generating a finish whose gorgeously layered, oscillating complexity as well as sheer persistence left my mouth agape and my salivary glands pumping. The purity, levity, and vibrancy on display here are nearly beyond belief. One thousand liters of this incredible, 145 Oechsle libation were picked on multiple occasions between mid-October and mid-November. I imagine it casting a spell for at least the next three decades and probably well beyond.
