This reproduction of the wine label comes from the Weingut Dr. Loosen, Bernkastel-Kues/Mosel, Website, which is available in English and auf Deutsch.

This six-year-old Mosel Riesling gives a delicious hint of the glories that await wine lovers who have the patience to cellar the top German wines of the Rhine and the Mosel. Its complexity and structure place it in the top rank of table wines, although -- even in this bone-dry example -- the stylistic difference between German wines and most of the rest of the world's table wines can't be ignored. I find quality German wines very enjoyable indeed, but they do require a paradigm shift if you've been drinking French or Italian table wines and their New World analogues.

Dr. Loosen 1991 Erdener Treppchen (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer) Riesling Kabinett ($13.99)
Clear straw color. Fresh apple and pine scents with musky notes, all overridden by the odd but appealing "petrol" scent of older Riesling. Full and tart sour-apple and tangerine fruit, highly acidic and fully dried out with age, no perceptible natural sweetness remaining. Clean apple and citrus persist in a long finish. Importer: Cellars International Inc. (Rudi Wiest), Carlsbad, Calif. (Nov. 25, 1997)

FOOD MATCH: This might be as much of a heritage thing as a wine-and-food thing, but this one went exceptionally well with a German-style dinner of boneless rolled pork loin roasted on a bed of sauerkraut laced with caraway seeds and dark beer.