2006 Alte Reben Saar WK

The 2006 Riesling Alte Reben Saar exemplifies Molitor’s aim “to preserve the tension in Saar wine, but with physiologically ripe grapes and ripe acidity,” which means much less prominent acidity than most consumers in Germany or the U.S. think of as “Saar-typical.” Quite full and creamy, this wears its extract on its sleeve – as though you could strain slate matter through your teeth. Cherry, fresh lime, and flowers are typical of the Saar and waft their way throughout, with low-toned nut oil suggestions and hints of honey. The sweetness is perfectly folded into this wine so that it tastes virtually dry. This should be versatile and fascinating to follow for at least 4-5 years. For details on the supremely ambitious and diligent Markus Molitor’s often unorthodox practices and unprecedented estate management, readers are urged to consult issue 167. I confess to having experienced trepidation approaching his wines in this vintage, since they are characteristically relatively creamy, opulent, soft, and full by Mosel standards, traits which it seemed possible could be exaggerated by the vintage character of 2006. Furthermore, here is a vintner who from 2005 vinified ten Beerenauslesen (only three of which I had yet tasted) and eleven Trockenbeerenauslesen (none of which had remotely finished fermenting when I visited in late summer 2006)! Molitor’s average yields and must weights were almost laughably extreme. Despite the rampant rot and stratospheric sugars “I utilized no charcoal, no bentonite, no cultured yeasts, not a single gram,” he asserts. “My opinion is, that wines made this year utilizing these materials – and that is the vast majority – may taste fine now, but they’ll lack the requisite structure to have a future.” His new, computer-controlled basket press was perfectly suited to drawing pure juice from tiny quantities of desiccated berries, “and I ended up putting the entire harvest from 89 acres in 20 sites through it, of course with my own program. We expanded the crew to more than 60 pickers this year, but still with our size we lacked enough time to linger over many vineyards.” The result was fewer wines of “normal” predicates than I had imagined. Although the number of B.A.s and T.B.A.s to be declared was not divulged – and some were certainly not ready to taste last year – 50% of the crop, Molitor says, could have been declared as Beerenauslese! As to my concerns about how 2006 would fare precisely at this address, they could scarcely have been less well founded. Importer: Schmitt Soehne, Millersville, MD; tel. (410) 729-4083