- Incredible Minerality and Balance to Go with Classic Sylvaner Fruit
- The Wine That Made Him Famous
2016 Julius Echter-Berg Grand Cru Site
- Sick Premier Cru Value at Under $25
- Incredible Precision and Balance
- Opulent, Yet Mineral and the Famous Julius Echter-Berg Aromas
If someone who loves wine and said give me the most delicious, unique, distinctive and most
2016 Vintage Report
Paul has never been more on top of his game than he is now. 2016 is like a carbon copy of 2014 in Franken but it seems more crunchy. Paul destroyed 16 and they are some of the prettiest and most refined wines from Franken I have ever tasted. And boy do they crunch. I would also say that 2016 is one of the best early drinking vintages that I've had in Germany. Every wine from every producer was absolutely singing. The funny thing is that acidity was at about the same level as 2015 and I'm inclined to think that the 16s will age slightly longer than the 15s.
Today I am thrilled to offer the 2016 Paul Weltner Hoheleite Silvaner Grosses Gewachs for $47.99 a bottle on a 4-pack. This is one of those wines that people who don't like German wine, always buy. Even if you don't like Riesling, you buy this wine. It is thrill a minute drinking. This is what he is known for. This wine is him, with the region's native grape, Sylvaner, taking it to never before seen highs. It is not just a wave of flavor, it is a tsunami of flavor. The aromas of this wine are truly wow. Sylvaner has such a unique nose and in this wine the sugar snap pea aromas are incredibly vivid. Bathed in minerals with riveting acidity, this wine is an experience. I've tasted many vintages of this wine but this is the best young one I've tasted. Just a thrill. The nose is psycho. Sweet greens, watercress and a mineral perfume like no other. Just intoxicating. The stunningly vivid aromatic detail of wet rocks and mineral are among the most precise I've ever smelled. Franken wines are dry and mineral, even for Germany they are extremely mineral. What Paul achieves is an opulence and clarity I haven't encountered before in Franken or Silvaner. It's quite an achievement. The palate is absolute perfection and why it leads me to say this is the best young version of this wine ever. It is so crunchy, juicy, straight, linear and explosive I could not believe it. The refinement is just beautiful. It is just so perfect. All the 16 whites I tasted all showed so well young. This has purity unlike any Sylvaner ever. I love how it's a terroir wine with refinement of Corton Charlemagne. The wine is so joyous and full of life. I stopped the tasting and shook Paul's hand. The balance is so unreal and the pleasure matched with geeky cerebral features was also in perfect balance. A wine for the geeks and everyone else! It is not to be missed. Truly a profound wine and the best Sylvaner in the world. I have tasted a ton of Silvaner. They do not get this deep and refined. This is what we are about at Fass Selections.
I did not plan on tasting or offering this wine but Paul poured the 2016 Paul Weltner Iphofer Julius Echter-Berg Sylvaner Erste Lage for $24.99 on a 4-pack it was not an option not to offer this wine. This wine is very special to me and I am debuting it now in the United States. I've always loved the wines from Rodelsee (Kuchenmeister/Scweinlate) that Paul makes but also used to really enjoy wines from neighboring Iphofen as well. In particular wines from the GG site, Julius Echter-Berg. It has crazy soils that is strong in keuper that radiates the suns heat and can create captivating aromas. Entrancing. But also as it can tend to be warm it is a site, for me that misses more than it hits. Not in 2016, as it was cooler here in this area of Franken and the wines have a sense of crunch and refinement from perfectly ripe fruit. It is brilliant and in the 1er Cru category this is as good as it gets. Big, terrific, mineral, floral and spicy nose. Classic JEB. Soaring aromas yet so precise. The palate is drop dead gorgeous. So crunchy deep and intense. Clean and easily the cleanest JEB I've ever had. What poise, texture and intensity. Wonderful pure mineral-driven flavors with exceptional balance and purity. So juicy and just stunningly opulent texture and a finish that kicks in with sweet herbal intensity. It is just beautiful. The finish dissipates perfectly. A work of art.
It's always a journey and experience to see and taste with Paul. This year I had arranged a dinner with him but had to cancel because I had to go back to the hotel and do work. Grab a quick dinner while I worked and at some old school Sausage joint in Miltenberg. Well we left at 8, hotel being 1 hour and 10 minutes away and there was an absolutely bonkers thunderstorm and also a 2 hour traffic delay due to construction. Got back home at 1 AM having eaten nothing and starving. I wish I would have stayed for dinner. Having said that the only thing that was not driving me insane on that car ride home was thinking about these 16's from Paul.
2016 Paul Weltner Hoheleite GG Sylvaner - $47.99 ($179.96 4-pack) (VERY LIMITED)
2016 Paul Weltner Silvaner Iphofer Sylvaner "Julius Echter Berg" Erste Lage - $26.99 ($99.96 4-pack) (LIMITED)
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