20 Year Old Dry German Riesling Direct from the Cellar - Legendary 2001 Vintage

The 2001 Vintage
 - Stunning
 - Classic

 - Middle Mosel Was the Star

Licht-Bergweiler
 - A Tier 1a Producer
 - Right Behind JJ Prum and Willi Schaefer Back in the Day
 - Never Figured Out Marketing
 - Still Some Old Jewels in the Cellar

A Rare Find from the Dawn of the Modern Dry Riesling Era

2001 Licht-Bergweiler Brauneberger Juffer Spatlese Trocken
 - Nose: Gorgeous and Classic
 - Anise, Herbs, and Mint
 - Vivid, Detailed and Fresh
 - Palate: Very Mineral, Very Fine and Elegant
 - Classic Mosel Green Apple
 - Amazing 2001 Acidity
 - Integrated Old Riesling Character

 - That Quintessential Mosel Minerality 

I have been going to the Mosel for a long time and like any place that you have been going for a while and you get to know people. I know a good amount of people in the Mosel and I can count Stefan Steinmetz of Weingut Gunther Steinmetz as one of my friends. He is one of the most knowledgeable people about the Mosel and Mosel wine I have ever met and has one of the best, if not the best, palates in all of Germany. If Stefan says something is good (which he rarely does), I listen. This is especially true in the Mosel as he knows it inside out and vine by vine going back 20 years. On my visit this in February 2013, Stefan told me about an estate that was for sale in the Mosel and that they had tons of old wine they were selling at low prices. My ears perked up. He then said he had a bunch of the wines on hand and asked if I wanted to taste them. I nearly opened the bottles with my teeth I was so excited. We tasted through a bunch of wines from the Licht-Bergweiler Estate and so many were brilliant!

What do Gentaz-Dervieux, Claire Dau, Raymond Trollat and Schloss Eltz all have in common? They all made terrific world-class wine and theyall do not exist anymore. Surely there must be more estates beyondthese that were the bee's knees and then hung it up for one reason oranother. Of course there are. Licht-Bergweiler was one of the great old estates of the Mosel. They were firmly in the 2nd tier behind JJ Prum and Willi Schaefer. The wines were spectacular old school Mosel style. Kind of like Steinmetz crossed with Willi Schaefer. 

Now it’s 9 years later and we work with Stefan and somebody has bought the Licht-Bergweiler estate and Stefan has brokered a deal where I can buy the old wines in the cellar. And I’m immediately going to sell the most desirable wine from the cellar. A stunning wine that is at peak! 

I have a wine today from Licht-Bergweiler and my inner wine geek is possibly more excited about than any wine in years! I am totally thrilled and geeked out to offer the 2001 Licht-Bergweiler Brauneberger Juffer Spatlese Trocken for as little as $45.99 on the 4-pack. I knew this wine was going to be insane based on previous bottles of the 2001 Fritz Haag Brauneberger Juffer Spatlese Trocken consumed in 2004-2005. That was one of the greatest trocken wines I have ever had. So I saw the label and saw the vineyard and saw the trocken designation I knew this was on like Donkey Kong. The wine is just ridiculous and incredibly unique.

This is aged in traditional fuders like Martin Muellen or Merkelbach.

The nose screams out of the glass with anise, herbs and mint. Vivid, detailed and fresh. Beguiling nose I could not stop smelling.

On the palate, this is very mineral, very fine and elegant and has that amazing 2001 acidity. Classic Mosel green apple integrated with the minerality. Ceratinly showing some old riesling characteristics, although they are integrated with the wine and not overwhelming. 2001 + acidity + Mosel = Pure Happiness. Trust me on that. 2001 is a stunning vintage in the Middle Mosel and Piesport and Brauneberg for me were the star villages. The wine is long and mineral and truly shows the strength of the vintage.

2001 Licht-Bergweiler Brauneberger Juffer Spatlese Trocken - $47.99 

($183.94 4-pack)