Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
From the Breumel parcel comes the 2004 Haardter Burgergarten Riesling Spatlese, a wine of purity, elegance and refinement significantly surpassing the wines that went before it. Aromas and flavors of yellow plum, quince, lemon, apricot, malt, sage and orange blossom are just a few of the highlights I met while trying to decide whether to spit. The rarified sense of lift and lightness and dance-like interplay of flavors along with honeyed richness, the hint of caramelized pit fruits and creaminess along with invigoratingly salty minerality all carry through to a finish of extraordinary class and length.
Riesling possesses a remarkable ability to reflect the character of wherever it is grown while still maintaining its identity. A regal variety of incredible purity and precision, this versatile grape can be just as enjoyable dry or sweet, young or old, still or sparkling and can age longer than nearly any other white variety. Somm Secret—Given how difficult it is to discern the level of sweetness in a Riesling from the label, here are some clues to find the dry ones. First, look for the world “trocken.” (“Halbtrocken” or “feinherb” mean off-dry.) Also a higher abv usually indicates a drier Riesling.
This sunny and relatively dry region served for many years as a German tourist mecca and was associated with low cost, cheerful wines. But since the 1980s, it has gained a reputation as one of Germany’s more innovative regions, which has led to increased international demand.