The best GG I have ever had: 2008 Schafer-Frohlich Felseneck

I have been on the GG bandwagon since my first dinner at Michael's with James Wright and Dr. K tasting the first vintage of the Schloss Schonborn Erstes Gewachs. Dry wines from Erbacher Marcobrunn and Hattenheimer Pffafenberg were a revelation for this very sweet German palate. James brought these over himself from Germany as in 2002-2003 these wines were not imported into the US, due to many reasons. Fervent allocations had to be met in Germany, Americans were still in the German sweet world, and there was not much to go around. I went to Germany in 2006 to taste the 2005's and this was considered at the time a great vintage for GG and EG wines. It still is but I think has been surpassed by 2007 and in some areas 2008. Typically they were served after the trocken wines and before the fruity wines, which I found a perfect place for them. I tasted GG's at Kunstler, Von Buhl, Rebholz, Dr. Heger, Wirsching, Furst and Schafer-Frohlich. I bought almost some representation of a GG from all of these producers, but the tasting at Tim Frohlich's seemed different. The wines had much more cut, precision and above all, freshness and a laser-like intensity. You have to remember also when I was tasting the wines, which was in August of 2006, which I believe is the best time to taste a new German vintage. That being August of the year after harvest, as the wines have sat and are about to be bottled. The GG wines by law have to be bottled beginning in September after the vintage so in August they are always in cask and in a sweet spot. The 2005's at this stage had loads of fruit, great acidity (or so we thought) and wonderful purity, which they still have now, despite being very very closed. As 2005 has aged the acidity has retreated and the wines are a bit clumsy, but no one knows how these GG wines will age as the first vintage was 2001. You need 20-30 years to begin to tell and 20-30 more to really tell. The tasting of these '05 Schafer-Frohlich GG's was one of those epiphany wine experiences that you never expect to have, but when you do there is nothing that is more rewarding. These wines were off the charts. In my notes I remember comparing them to Grand Cru Chablis, but now I look back and they were like German Roulots but better. Amazing cut and precision with riveting acidity that left your mouthwatering and not mouth-puckering, wonderful mid-palate depth, strong vineyard character, myriads of fruit flavors, utmost finesse and they had an aristocratic feel to them. Total all world white wines. After the first sip of Felsenberg I realized I was about to experience something new and exciting. Each one blew me away and I bought some right on the spot. I have tasted every vintage since and Tim, the genius that he is, has surpassed the '05's with the rich, powerful '06's, the perfectly balanced and fruity/ethereal '07's where Felseneck started to command more respect and was priced accordingly, and now the crystal-clean sheen of the startling 08's. With '08, Felseneck can be and should be mentioned in the same sentence as Keller Abtserde, Donnhoff Hermanshohle, Clemens Busch Raffes, Rebholz Kastanienbusch as the Grand Cru of the Grand Cru dry white wines of Germany.

The 2008 is the cleanest most pure and detailed dry German wine I have ever had, and I have had a a lot, as I am a trocken head. The GG is still finding itself stylistically as some can be big, overbearing, extracted alcoholic wines that lack the finesse that German wines are known for. But there are also many gems, and as of any new wine style that is developed there will be many misses. This Schafer-Frohlich wine showed the potential of how great these wines can be. I did a one word note on it a couple posts ago but it is a wine that deserved way more than one word. I was lucky to spend three days with it and it went through a nasty adolescence three hours after it was opened. At the three hour point it was closed and smelled like chalk and the palate was closed in on itself, but at the end of the finish it lasted and lasted and you could tell it was just going to slowly blossom. The next day is when the fireworks started, as the wine dropped some of its weight, had more of crystalline texture with gobs and smacks of crunchy lime-infused minerals all the while showing its razor sharp edges precisely, leaving your mouth watering for more. It was hard to resist not drinking it all on day 2, but I was convinced this had the stuff to really show even better on day 3. Day 3 is when the wine hit nirvana for me. Everything was in perfect harmony, like one of the most perfectly balanced wines I have ever had harmony. The wine commanded your attention. The nose was like the bottom of a waterfall, if the waterfall was constructed of rocks, limes, small citrus fruits and flowers falling from 80 feet up and I was standing maybe 10 feet from the bottom being enveloped in this aromatic mist. Yea I know a little flowery but this was the best GG wine I have ever had, so I need to pontificate a bit. Every sip left you joyous, contemplative and most important wanting more, because not only was it delicious, you also wanted to explore it. It was a dense and layered wine, like a Fassbinder movie, but the difference was that this wine was actually accessible.


I am convinced this would have lasted till day 5 and 6 and will age gracefully for 20-30 years. This had the stuff. Both pictures are from my trip to Germany in August of 2008 and are of the Felseneck vineyard which is literally right outside of Tim's front door.