Moderators: Jenise, Robin Garr, David M. Bueker
AlexR wrote:I scored two wines (2008 Schlumberger Les Princes Abbé and 1998 Deiss Altenberg de Bergheim) under 10 out of 20, whereas our host was on the other end of the scale for these…
Then there was the old wine, the 1998 Deiss Altenberg de Bergheim… I thought it was the 2nd best of the tasting
Alex Rychlewski wrote:I went to a tasting of Alsace Riesling yesterday (blind, 8 of us around a table). These are the wines we tried:........
Opinions varied widely on the wines, and many of us had a problem with what we deemed excess acidity. However one or two experienced tasters said that, no, this acidity came with the territory, ensured proper ageing, and that the best wines would blossom into something wonderful over time (“give ‘em 10-15 years,” I was told).
Why was I so skeptical? Why did I feel that this searing acidity and, in some instances, bitterness was indicative of an imbalance that will never go away?
Then there was the old wine, the 1998 Deiss Altenberg de Bergheim… I thought it was the 2nd best of the tasting, but it was shot down in flames by half the table because of its oxidative character. I think the explanation lies in the different approach to such flavors by French and English-speaking tasters, a split most obvious in Champagne.
Anyway, this tasting sparks my curiosity and makes me want to give the wines another chance at a second tasting and to investigate older Alsace Riesling.
Best regards,
Alex R.
David M. Bueker
Riesling Guru
34424
Thu Mar 23, 2006 11:52 am
Connecticut
David M. Bueker
Riesling Guru
34424
Thu Mar 23, 2006 11:52 am
Connecticut
David M. Bueker
Riesling Guru
34424
Thu Mar 23, 2006 11:52 am
Connecticut
AlexR wrote:I had a heroic slanging match on this very forum with Thor a few years back.
He insisted that Alsace wines were dry, bone dry, and that if the ones I bought had residual sugar that's because they came from supermarket that only sell dross.
A recent article in the NY Times, however, cited just this very problem, with consumers never knowing if they're going to get a dry or semi-sweet wine when they buy an Alsace.
A real stumbling block.
Alex R.
David M. Bueker wrote:Tim - the vast majority of the producers you mention are virtually unavailable in the USA. Mann is seen, but the wines are generally very sweet (even the Rieslings since about 2004). Boxler is great, but has a terrible distribution arrangement that makes it very hard to get the wines. The rest...rarely seen.
David M. Bueker wrote:There was a time, not so long ago, when Alsatian Riesling was generally dry - even bone dry. Then, sometime in the 90s, a certain vigneron who shall remain nameless (OH) decided to bottle German Auslese in the Alsatian flute, was rewarded for it in certain circles (and not just by former Maryland lawyers), and things turned for the sweet. By 1998 or so the race for ripeness was on across the region. Go back to the late 80s/early 90s and the majority of the Rieslings are indeed dry.
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