2008 Erben von Beulwitz Kaseler Nies'chen Riesling Auslese Alte Reben Goldkapsel Auction AP 04

Weis’s 2008 Kaseler Nies’chen Riesling Auslese Alte Reben – which was to be auctioned – displays more lift and refinement as well as more advanced ripeness than its fellow Nies’chen Auslese of this collection. Pineapple, grapefruit, and yellow plum inform a luscious, creamy palate, with vintage-typical acidity here sublimated and harnessed in the cause of energy, refreshment, and sheer flavor persistence, rather than standing out in and of itself. Honey and brown spices but also hints of salt and stone add allure to the long finish of this Auslese apt to be worth following for a quarter century. Vintner-hotelier-restaurateur Herbert Weis – not quite all of whose 2008s I tasted – continues to offer from his choice holdings in Kaseler Nies’chen a stylistically wide range of Riesling that plays in the Ruwer’s big leagues. They less often display the delicate side of their region, being instead more often notable for sheer stuffing and grip, which in some ways makes the pull of 2008 in the direction of levity and elegance a perfect opportunity for them to shine, as indeed they did. In fact, Weis’s is as notable a Ruwer performance as any this vintage. Like many growers, he confesses to having jumped the gun at harvest but says “then I took an 8 or 9 day break because I said ‘this just can’t be – these grapes aren’t really ripe’,” and he did not seriously attack his better parcels until the last days of October. Importers: Mosel Wine Merchant Trier, Germany, tel. (413) 429-6176; +49 (0) 651 14551 38 and Dee Vine Wines, San Francisco, CA tel. (877) 389- 9463