WTN: 93 Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Spatlese

I find at cellar doors or organised tastings I often view wines more favourably than when I get them home and try them in my normal environment.

I didn't like this at the importer's tasting last month, so I opened this with a little trepidation - what if this comes out worse than that? The bottle did open strangely. The cork (which was quite short) was wet through, and dark at the end to 0.5cm - the TOP end! Almost like someone has put an old cork back in the wrong way.

The wine looks better than the cork. Glowing straw gold. Lanolin lemons and limes to smell, perhaps with a touch of the vaseline that put me off last time round. The palate is relatively dry, an older style spatlese. Lemons, grapefruit, beeswax, a hint of honey and a touch of forest floor. Persistent and satisfying, this still has an acid spine, crystalline fruit purity and quite an energy to it that I didn't expect from a 16 year old wine. Would have been tooth rotting in in its youth. Lovely aperitif style that the importer has secured into Aus, has years ahead of it still and will find a home in my cellar.

Cheers

Andrew

I find at cellar doors or organised tastings I often view wines more favourably than when I get them home and try them in my normal environment.

I can see the cellar door thing but organized tastings as well? I find that those places are often not the best for getting to the depths and details of a wine, so it is natural that when you spend more time with something at home you find more than during a quick mass tasting.

Regardless, nice wine!

Tried one in May and had difficlutly with the cork too,,,

1993 Zilliken Saarburger Rausch Riesling Spatlese 7.5%
The cork had good adhesion around the circumference but the center was completely crumbled and came out messily, in a thousand pieces. Aroma seemed fine so I decanted to remove cork debris using a coffee paper filter (some consider this a no-no, but it worked just fine). Miraculously, no sign of oxidation. Fragrant aromas of peach, persimmon and honey. At slightly warmer temperatures a pleasant kerosene note emerged, subtle and integrated. Acidity was initially very lively, with a citric tinge. Before food, it somewhat overwhelmed the delicate sweetness, but after food the balance righted itself. As it warmed, the aromatics kept getting stronger and stronger, showing beautifully what it's like to be mature but not old (like me?). Purchased at some obscene price at Crush last year (under $30) so I feared an attack of "you get what you pay for," but it was just lovely. Yes, Saar!

Had it a couple months ago and enjoyed. Thanks for notes!

Andrew,

Just as a side remark: I am deeply into mature Mosel riesling and 0.5 cm of dark rot at the top end of a cork is a sign of quality to me as it means that it aged without capsule for years, most likely at the Estate ... and that the Estate did not tamper with the wine and recork it before shipping. In this case, I know this to be the case, knowing both the wine and the bin in which it was sitting for the last 16 years at the Estate

J