Franken 2010 - Hans Wirsching

I absolutely love going to visit the Hans Wirsching estate in idyllic Iphofen, which is my absolute favorite wine village in all of Germany. Picturesque like nobody's business. Some great pics this year but there are some (actually all) pics are from Julie Besancon, who was my travelling companion this trip and did have an iphone to take some pictures. Dr. Uwe Mateus, the director of the estate is an absolute rock star and always makes me and whoever I am with feel right at home. Now onto the wines. The 2010's at Wirsching have some moments but all in all the de-acidification really hurt this estate as they make almost 90% dry wines and they were bringing in grapes at 15 g/pl/acid so they had no choice as there is no buffering sugar. Having said that there still were some impressive wines.

2010 Estate Silvaner - This was one of those impressive wines. Super mineral, lovely vegetable/green notes and very juicy and long. Really impressive for a basic Silvaner.

2010 Iphofer Kronsberg Silvaner Trocken - This was also very good. Higher toned minerality than the basic estate Silvaner. Very elegant and complex already. Lovely little wine.

2010 Iphofer Kronsberg Silvaner Kabinett Trocken - Mineral, ripe and pure. Elegant and smokey palate. Lovely classic Silvaner vegetable aromas. Pretty big on the palate but still nimble and refined.

2010 Iphofer Julius Echter Berg Silvaner Kabinett Trocken - Powerfully mineral nose as is expected with the Julius Echter Berg. Ripe and very juicy on the palate. Tea-like aromas. Some quince and intense minerality. So pure.

2010 Iphofer Kalb Silvaner - Not bad. Not great. Silky and mineral and very ripe. Lowish acidity.

2010 Iphofer Krosnberg Silvaner "S" - Killer aromas. Really penetrates the nostrils. Very elegant. Almost haunting elegance. Long and complex and chewy on the finish. Excellent.

2010 Julius Echter Berg Silvaner GG - This was out of this world. Mineral nose with huge ripeness and loads of quince. Very floral too. Suave and very complex with lovely saline/sea-breeze aromas and inner mouth aromatics. Dances on the palate. Best wine so far, by a mile.

2010 Iphofer Kronsberg Silvaner GG - Stoney vegetables on the nose. Pure and clean palate with huge amounts of dry extract. Like, wow. Rich yet balanced. Very pretty wine. A great GG.

2010 Julius Echter Berg Riesling Kabinett Trocken - Huge minerals on the nose and one of those wines where you can smell the acid. Very, pure, elegant and intense but seems to be lacking some energy.

2009 Julius Echter Berg Riesling "S" - I forgot how great Wirsching did in 2009 and this wine was an ample reminder. Wonderful, mineral and vegetable nose. Earthy and pure with wicked elegance. Suave and sappy on the palate with clean and crisp flavors. There are some dried fruit flavors that really add to the haunting complexity here. The nose really brings the funk as this is 50% sponti and 50% cultured yeasts. Very complex wine and really better than all the 2010's.

2010 Julius Echter Berg Riesling GG - Spicy and mineral nose. Tight palate with good acids and serious density. But almost too tight to evaluate.

1990 Julius Echter Berg Riesling Spatlese Trocken - Pretty amazing wine. What a nose. Minerals abound. Almost like a paste of minerals. Ripe and sinewy palate. But the nose keeps getting me. Leather, smoke and wild herbs make this fascinating aromatically. Deep yellow almost urine-like color. Palate is spicey and elegant with great mouthfeel and concentration. The finish leaves sawdust and vegetables on the palate. Why I love Franconian Riesling.

2010 Iphofer Kronsberg Scheurebe "S" - Currants, citrus and minerals on the nose. Really awesome nose. Great acids on this. Lively and elegant and oh so appealing.

2008 Spatburgunder "S" Trocken - In this area of Franken they are not known for their Spatburgunder but this was an impressive effort. Minerals and spices on the foresty and brambly nose, Loads of wild berries on this. Lovely purity along with earth and tree bark on the palate. Really good.