(OK - this is not really an entry level wine because it is not their least expensive wine and it would
The great winemakers always make wines that shoot above their weight. Village wines taste like Premier Cru. Premier Crus taste like Grand Crus. And Grand Crus, well the Grand Crus blow your mind. Well Battenfeld Spanier is one of the great winemakers of Europe. They are considered the top producer in Germany for 2015 now, at least according to Falstaff, the influential Austrian Wine magazine. And today's offer tastes like a Premier Cru wine for $22.99 on a case purchase.
This is one of the best value plays in the whole portfolio, the 2014 Battenfeld Spanier Hohen-Sulzen Riesling Trocken which can be had for as little as $24.99 on a 4-pack and because I am VERY bullish on this wine I want to offer a special case price of $22.99 a bottle for this stunner of a Riesling. This is essentially a baby Frauenberg, their glorious Grosses Gewachs/Grand Cru, as it is young vines from that magnificent site. The 2014 is just flat out amazing. I was tasting it and just could not believe how complete, how deep, how site specific (the limestone shines through), how perfumed, how complex, how delicate it was. I just wrote amazing. Gorgeous. I also remarked of all the wines tasted this evening, this was the one I wanted to drink right now. The finish is fresh and mineral and has tremendous persistence. The fruit is prominent and if that is what you like there is no shortage of it here. It was the most open, the most succulent, and the most downright satisfying in a way in that you don't feel your missing anything. You feel you're getting all the wine has to offer. Hohen-Sulzen has that quality and it is what makes it a list favorite. Yet it will age. It is Riesling, it has acid, it has a nominal amount of sugar. With age, and I think it will age for 5-7 years, but Riesling can surprise you so I'd tuck away a few for 10+ years. The 2014, is so different from the Moelsheim, which is just as but it is a baby Hergott GG, which tastes completely different.
That's also why I am encouraging case buys here as it will age, or its so delicious you will drink a case in the first year.
- You will drink it on a Tuesday with salmon because it's great with food.
- You will drink it on a Sunday while watching television and contemplate its complexity as it opens.
- You will drink 4-5 bottles at a party because it's such a value you can afford to and everyone from wine lovers to novices will love it.
Whatever works for you, but the value/quality here is nothing short of sensational, so you will drink it. A lot.
My visit at Battenfeld Spanier is always one of my most memorable visits every time I am in Germany and Carolin and H.O. are terrific people. It's more like old friends getting together than anything resembling an official tasting. I will sell every bottle of their 14's because they are such incredible wines.
Many of you have had the extraordinary Rieslings of Battenfeld-Spanier and have written me about how great they are. And they are. Certified organic and biodynamic the chiseled, opulent, mineral Rieslings are about as perfect as you can get in dry German Riesling. Every bottle is an experience and at every price point they just need to be tasted, contemplated, discussed and enjoyed. This is an estate like Dujac, Donnhoff, Keller, Clos Rougeard, Overnoy, in that you buy whatever you can get. And you buy big. Each vintage gets better and better, with 2014 being their crown jewel.
From the estate Riesling to the grandest GG, they excel at every level of Riesling. These wines are forces of nature with amazingly decadent and pure fruit served on a sleek plate of minerals. The wines are chiseled and opulent at the same time. The juicy and accessible nature of 2014 make this one of my favorite vintages to date there. They do not lack of depth at all but man are they juicy and energetic. Young drinking will be super fun for these.
2014 Battenfeld Spanier Riesling Trocken Hohen Sulzen - $26.99
($99.96 4-pack, $275.88 case)
No comments:
Post a Comment