2017 Serriger Schloss Saarstein Auslese Goldkapsel

This 300-liter auction lot leads with the scent of raw mushrooms that permeates so many of the vintage 2017 Schloss Saarstein bottlings. Prickly bruised lemon peel, pungently sweaty salinity, bruised apple skin, pear distillate and peach preserves also rise from the glass. The pungency is reinforced by the effects of sulfur, which is doubtless also hardening the palate impression somewhat. Even so, a metaphorically metallic sheen and wince-inducing brightness are part and parcel of this formidably concentrated elixir. An astonishing 13.3 grams of acidity are pitted against 93 grams of residual sugar and the upshot is only a very modest sense of sweetness! The finish jolts in its electric alliance of lemon and mineral salts, joined by pear and marzipan. I expect that this will come around, but it needs lots of time. (Ebert sorted through the fruit that became this wine to pick out 200 liters’ worth of Beerenauslese. But unfortunately, he did not have a half-bottle to share with me.)