WTN: Unheralded Saar and 2005 Drinking?

I recently purchased a bottle of the 2005 Moritz Gogrewe Wiltinger Klosterberg Riesling Spätlese. Although I had not heard of the producer before, it is supposedly a small weingut, ambitious, hardworking, organic, undervalued, etc, etc, and I was excited about potentially finding a new source for scratching my Saar itch.

However, this bottle is not inspiring me. The wine is fine. Sweet, firm, and clear. Competent. But dull. And lacking energy even for an 2005. And this is the Saar!

Of course I haven't had an 05 German riesling in a while so I don't know how they are evolving. Does anyone think this is just a funky stage? Any other experiences with the producer?

As mentioned elsewhere, bottles from the 2005 vintage are going through a blousy phase with some showing signs of closing down (on the flavour side).

But just to prove that no rule is a rule without exceptions: a bottle of 2005er JJ Prüm Graacher Himmelreich Auslese (AP 01 07) two weeks ago at Schloss Monaise in Trier was delicious ... but also quite rich.

Hope this helps.

Hmmm, blousy. That's a new one to me, for wine anyway. For garments, I think it means loose, billowy, flowing, even large. For wine, not sure what is meant here. Seems nearly opposite of shutting down to me.

Saar-y, I need help...

the 2005 are rather loose and rich on the palate but slightly muted and diffuse on the nose (closed), which adds to this style. In fact blousy.

this is vintage that will require a lot of time to "slim down".

Hope this helps. J

As mentioned elsewhere, bottles from the 2005 vintage are going through a blousy phase with some showing signs of closing down (on the flavour side).

That I understand. But have the acids gone into hibernation? Does that really happen? I obviously haven't had this Gogrewe wine before so I don't know how it showed in the past but I remember much better acids from the better Saar 05s earlier in the game.

just to prove that no rule is a rule without exceptions: a bottle of 2005er JJ Prüm Graacher Himmelreich Auslese (AP 01 07) two weeks ago at Schloss Monaise in Trier was delicious.

Prüm is always the exception

However, this bottle is not inspiring me. The wine is fine. Sweet, firm, and clear. Competent. But dull. And lacking energy even for an 2005. And this is the Saar!

Never even heard of this producer, but - in a vintage like '05 - are you really expecting the Saar to be any different from the Nahe or Mosel? Global warming has tentacles, you know...

but - in a vintage like '05 - are you really expecting the Saar to be any different from the Nahe or Mosel?

From my limited exposure the Saar was one of the most 'successful' regions in 05. In particular, von Hovel, Zilliken, and E Muller all made phenomenal wines with great delineation and racy verve (within the context of the vintage). von Hovel's higher pradikat wines were rich yet light as air. Definitely not blousy. Do you disagree?

Of course I didn't taste this one earlier and I haven't tasted the others recently, so I didn't know if they have all been evolving this way or what.

Hence my post

JeanF,

Yes, I see it all now. Thanks.

but - in a vintage like '05 - are you really expecting the Saar to be any different from the Nahe or Mosel?

From my limited exposure the Saar was one of the most 'successful' regions in 05. In particular, von Hovel, Zilliken, and E Muller all made phenomenal wines with great delineation and racy verve (within the context of the vintage). von Hovel's higher pradikat wines were rich yet light as air. Definitely not blousy. Do you disagree?

Of course I didn't taste this one earlier and I haven't tasted the others recently, so I didn't know if they have all been evolving this way or what.

Hence my post

Well, producer is everything with riesling, particularly in a warmer vintage, so I'm sure the producers you mentioned can produce racy wines in most vintages. Unfortunately, I'll have to wait on comparisons because I'm still drinking down older vintages. Next spring I might have an answer, and hoping for the best.

Acidity in 2005 have weird patterns in the Saar but should be on the high side. Egon Müller, ZIlliken brought in beasts that were happily hitting 12g/l ... However, von Hövel and Dr. Wagner had lower maybe more harmonious but still noticeable levels of acidity (Rahsaan - no acidity /low acidity in Saar is surprising to say the least ... unless intentional de-acidification has been done).

(Rahsaan - no acidity /low acidity in Saar is surprising to say the least ... unless intentional de-acidification has been done).

Yes, as I mentioned elsewhere, now that you have me thinking, this was probably a case of me criticizing the quality of the acids rather than their technical level. The wine was certainly not heavy and it was relatively fresh. But it lacked the raciness and the zest that I look for, especially from the Saar. So it probably is a case of the stage.

And now I know to be more judicious about popping 05 corks!

Ok, I'm going to go with Jean and the whole shut-down blowsy phase thing, because the remainders of the bottle are showing much better tonight. Yes it has the 05 fruit depth but the zesty Saar acids are also in play and the wine is much more interesting for my palate. At the very least, this producer just re-entered my 'explore further' category.