At a dinner party with dear friends we opened the 2007 Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Schlossberg Riesling Spatlese 'Schmitt'. This bottling is from a specific parcel within the Zeltinger Schlossberg (that's the Schmitt), and is picked as an entire block rather than in the successive pass method that normally is used for German Riesling. In prior years the Schmitt had been an auslese, and really more like a high-class beerenauslese released at an absurdly low price. Well despite 2007 being a fairly ripe vintage (though with better balance that 2006 or 2005 IMO) the Schmitt only came in as what was released as a spatlese (I am certain it's solid auslese in must weight).
The wine is fascinating and emminently drinkable. Like its "basic" Schlossberg Spatlese brother (which I reported on previously) it has abundant lime, apple & hard peach fruit, and also vibrant and balanced acidity. What the Schmitt has is a sense of wine that has been suffused with the essence of glacial meltwater, carrying ancient stone from eons past directly into the glass. Much like looking into a crevasse of the glacier, the wine has stunning beauty and depth that goes beyond seeing (or in this case tasting). This is Riesling distilled to its etheral essence, and a reminder that the great Rieslings, whether they be from Alsace, Germany, Austria, Australia or Alpha Centauri are all Riesling at the core.