WineLovers Discussion Group

2007 Joh. Jos. Prüm Riesling Kabinett

Color: Wet straw yellow

Nose: Overwhelming odor of fresh asphalt on opening. The “tarvey”, as we call it in parts of the Hoosier state, burned away after a few minutes in the glass to reveal more of a standard petrol nose with light sulfur and a very nice pineapple note.

Taste: My wife and I said “peaches” right away. Our daughter got more lemon and pineapple. On further contemplation I could pick out lemon, lime, apricot, pineapple, pear, apple – an explosion of fresh fruit. Excellent balance with an acid backbone and understated sweetness. The minerally (is that a word?) finish was crisp and clean.

This was yet another wonderful wine from JJ Prum. I cannot remember ever tasting a disappointing example of a JJ Prum wine. I believe that I found this single bottle of the ’07 Kab somewhere on sale for under $20. I do get depressed drinking the Prum Riesling because I know that I will have to compare it to the “not Prum” Rieslings that I will be forced to drink in the future. This was outstanding juice at a great QPR.

Sam Platt wrote: I do get depressed drinking the Prum Riesling because I know that I will have to compare it to the “not Prum” Rieslings that I will be forced to drink in the future.

Well you could drink Egon Muller, but then you would get depressed at the pricing.

Sam Platt wrote:I do get depressed drinking the Prum Riesling because I know that I will have to compare it to the “not Prum” Rieslings that I will be forced to drink in the future.

Just within the MSR, drink Schmitt-Wagner (they're still out there), Selbach-Oster, Willi Schaefer, Schloss Lieser, Meulenhof, Grunhaus, von Othegraven and you may find a number of those reach the bar that Prum sets if that's your benchmark for what German Riesling is. Many, many great producers out there that occupy the same quality level, IMO, and more of them are coming into the US these days.

I poured an 04 Schmitt-Wagner Auslese for my blind tasting group recently. Inexpensive, stunningly good (though most of their wines usually are), and served blind, there were a couple of guesses as to whether I was pouring JJ Prum.

I think the style of each of those producers is so distinctly different from Prum that it might not be what Sam is looking for.

I certainly have not tasted Riesling as widely as have the two of you. However, what I find most enjoyable about the Prum wines is that the reductive elements are present, but the complexity and balance of the wines is still outstanding. I have not been able to find many Rieslings that exhibit that characteristic though St. Urbans-Hof comes to mind as a minor league Prum.

I do enjoy Selbach-Oster and Grunhaus Rieslings though they are stylistically different from Prum. The piggy-bank would have to be raided for a bottle of Muller. I have never seen a Schmidt-Wagner Riesling but will keep an eye out for it.

If that slightly reductive/sponti yeast/sulfury funk nose in Prum or SUH is what grabs you, be sure to try out Schloss Lieser - their wines aren't expensive, and Thomas Haag is doing some amazing things in the Mosel these days. For something a bit riper/bigger, Schafer-Frohlich is making amazing wines too.

Thank you for the recommendations, Salil. I will see if I can order those wines on the internet.

Schloss Lieser Kabinett is reasonably easy to find, and also a decent value. Schafer-Frohlich pricing has gotten a bit...err...trendy.

Thanks David. It looks like Vine and Table in Indianapolis has the 2009 Schloss Lieser Kabinett. Their catalog also shows a 2011 Schafer-Frohlich Felseneck Spatlese. At $46 the Schafer-Frohlich is on the high side of what I like to pay, but I will give it a shot. I will pick the wines up this weekend when I am down that way.

Just be warned that the Felseneck Spatlese is pretty damn sweet - more like an Auslese.

If you're looking for something closer in terms of sweetness to the Prum you posted on, then search for his Bockenauer Kabinett (much cheaper than the Spat), or for something a bit less sweet, his medium dry Riesling.

Thanks for the warning Salil. Vine and Table doesn't show the Kabinett online, but they may still have it in the shop. I will see what I can find.