German Catalog 2006 USE THIS ONE.qxp - Michael Skurnik Wines

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RHEINHESSEN WINES 126 THE PATERBERG SERIES I think we need to highlight this unlikely vineyard because no one suspects how good it is, and Walter always seems to pull something remarkable from it. In fact, over the years I think he’s actually more synchronous with Paterberg than with his Grand Crus from the red slope. Yet no one else has even hinted at the beauty which lies inside this land. It’s like a shy dog who only obeys one master. Paterberg is a large site, covering the entire limestone plateau south of Nierstein on the way to Oppenheim. I’m sure other growers don’t see it as predestined for riesling; the site is wuthering and windswept, and botrytis is extremely rare. I don’t even know that I’d call it a Grand Cru, though I’d argue its best sections are 1er Cru and the whole thing is a fascinating lieu dit. Walter has several parcels, the best (and oldest) of which gives us the “starred” wines. This is lower down and more sheltered. The signature-flavors run to lemongrass and the minty herbs; mint itself, tarragon, Japanese green teas (Sencha and Gyokoru), spicy apples (Empires) and lime-zest; wintergreen too-you get the picture. Peachy it’s not. But there’s a kind of density of spice, as if set alight on the palate. These are iridescently scintillating wines, ultra-violet and fabulous at the table. Here goes. . . GST-120H 2004 Niersteiner Paterberg Riesling Spätlese, 12/375ml CORE-LIST WINE. Untouched, unblended, with 65 g.l. of its own RS; a pure parfait of lime and tarragon; seductive fructose-y note against this icy blade of spice; there hasn’t been a better vintage of this. SOS: 2 (between six and twenty years) GST-125 2005 Niersteiner Paterberg Riesling Spätlese CORE-LIST WINE. In `05 there’s less lemon-grass and more a sort of sweet celery or celeriac; it’s very long and adamantly spicy, with an inside-sweetness like roasted beets; picked very late with a hint of botrytis; crunchy and tasty. SOS: 2 (7-19 years) GST-127 2005 Niersteiner Paterberg Riesling Spätlese*** + Just one tank that was perfect as-is. 40-year old vines, the wine is sweet on paper but the very low pH (2.9!) makes for another tactile impression entirely: it’s quite rococo, but also cherubic and playful; incredibly minty fragrance; electrically spicy entry, so much buzz and zing it would crimp your hair, yet the tertiary finish suggests a grand core of fruit concentration and a regal future. SOS: 2 (8-22 years) GST-123H 2004 Niersteiner Paterberg Riesling Eiswein, 12/375ml ++ Picked on the last day of school, 12/22, but Walter’s Japanese friend Hideki and ten of his banker friends helped with the picking and they got done so early the kids had to go to school anyway! It came in at 140° Oechsle with a sensible 10.7 g.l. acidity, and it is THE great Strub Eiswein; just a pure lime and plum candy-cane; absurdly beautiful: a syrup of linden-blossom, blueberries and wintergreen, and this is why there’s nothing like the greatest Eisweins. SOS: 4 (between twelve and thirty years)
take me to your liter This is a schizy segment of my portfolio. Some of you report great success with this size. Others report it’s impossible to sell. These, in my opinion, are the arguments in favor of the Liter: • It doesn’t sit around in the fridge as long as a magnum, thereby diminishing the chance of spoilage. • It’s the perfect size bottle for three or four people on a casual occasion. It contains eight glasses of wine. • It’s the perfect size for the cook who wants or needs a cup or so to cook with. There’s the equivalent of a full bottle left over for drinking with the meal! • It nearly always contains a dry, light wine that’s low in alcohol and very high on pure refreshment value. It’s nearly always estate-bottled. It seems to me the only way to sell this size is to floor-stack it. If it stands on the shelf alongside 750s, it won’t stand out enough as a larger package. If it’s floor-stacked, you can always put a sign behind it screaming FULL LITER! Equivalent to just 56¢ per a 750!!!!! But some of you have tried all these bright ideas and you tell me the wines still don’t sell. I have one final bright idea. FORGET THEY’RE LITERS. Don’t even tell anybody it’s a bigger bottle. It’s just a bottle of wine for ten bucks. If someone says “My, it’s a bit heavy,” you say “Oh, yeah, it’s a special; they threw in 25% more free.” And everyone’s happy. It’s like the Super Deal aisle at your local supermarket. Shampoo, 25% more free. Man we love that word free. Free wine! I think I offer the very best jug-wine quality you can find anywhere on the market today. I know of no other merchant offering such a variety of cheap, estate-bottled wine in large bottles. I say this in all modesty, or at least in as much modesty as I can muster! They’ll do the job at least as well as—I think better than—anything else in the category. Give them a try if you haven’t yet. Here they are, the PICK OF THE LITERS: GRH-046L 2005 Reuscher-Haart Piesporter Falkenberg Riesling, 1.0 Liter GJS-069L 2005 Jakob Schneider Niederhäuser Riesling Kabinett, 1.0 Liter GST-126L 2005 J.u.H.A. Strub Niersteiner Riesling Kabinett 1.0 Liter GWG-012L 2005 Wagner-Stempel Siefersheimer Riesling Trocken, 1.0 Liter GGY-059L 2005 Gernot Gysler Weinheimer Silvaner Halbtrocken, 1.0 Liter GGY-058L 2005 Gernot Gysler Weinheimer Scheurebe Halbtrocken, 1.0 Liter GDD-020L 2005 Dr. Deinhard Riesling Halbtrocken, 1.0 Liter GMS-111L 2005 Herbert Messmer Estate Riesling Halbtrocken, 1.0 Liter GMS-119L 2005 Herbert Messmer Spätburgunder, 1.0 Liter GTM-089L 2005 Theo Minges Riesling Halbtrocken, 1.0 Liter GTM-090L 2005 Theo Minges Riesling, 1.0 Liter GDR-136L 2005 Kurt Darting Dürkheimer Feuerberg Portugieser Weissherbst, 1.0 Liter GDR-137L 2005 Kurt Darting Dürkheimer Nonnengarten Riesling Kabinett, 1.0 Liter 127
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terry theise estate selections Impo
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ii “Within every effort there has
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iv contents Theise Manifesto . . .
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vi LET US WRITE YOUR ORDER FOR YOU!
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2 These things coincided with a dec
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4 View of the Mosel. human care and
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6 Continuing New Approach to Tastin
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8 Making the Case For German Wines
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10 I’m sure I didn’t convert th
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12 Principles of Selection in this
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14 Belgium, and they immediately ru
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16 Core-List Wines The core-list, w
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18 to know better) that the great d
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20 How I Approach Wine, or Let Wine
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22 time and lots of flavor. Due to
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24 SHORT-LIST FOR ROCKHEADS: Dr Dei
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26 “Antiques” 2001 has modestly
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28 Ah but this isn’t P.C., you se
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30 How German Wines Age To define a
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32 Label Basics German labels are s
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34 around until he gets fluent in t
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36 Plusses and The Quest For Perfec
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38 sommelier alert GSO-264 2005 Sel
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40 subject: why riesling? A) Becaus
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42 Treking up the Erdener Treppchen
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MOSEL WINES 44 Other Regionals from
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MOSEL WINES 46 could do was sit the
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MOSEL WINES 48 A Look At The Vineya
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MOSEL WINES 50 THE SPÄTLESEN GSO-2
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MOSEL WINES 52 SCHTICKIES! GSO-281
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MOSEL WINES 54 Erstwhile cellar-mas
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MOSEL WINES 56 it’s confusing. Me
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MOSEL WINES 58 alfred merkelbach mo
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MOSEL WINES 60 GME-135 2005 Ürzige
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MOSEL WINES 62 joh. jos. christoffe
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MOSEL WINES 64 GJC-146 2005 Erdener
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MOSEL WINES 66 Sleek, feminine, ele
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MOSEL WINES 68 he elects not to.
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MOSEL WINES 70 a.j. adam mosel •
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MOSEL WINES 72 changing; enterprisi
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MOSEL WINES 74 reuscher-haart mosel
Page 84 and 85: MOSEL WINES 76 hoffmann-simon •Vi
Page 86 and 87: MOSEL WINES 78 weingut ansgar clüs
Page 88 and 89: 80 Does this self-evident truth rea
Page 90 and 91: MOSEL WINES 82 carl loewen mosel
Page 92 and 93: MOSEL WINES 84 carl schmitt-wagner
Page 94 and 95: MOSEL WINES 86 karlsmühle-geiben r
Page 96 and 97: 88 Is all taste equally valid? Sure
Page 98 and 99: 90 mittelrhein wines In 1900 there
Page 100 and 101: MITTELRHEIN WINES 92 Bacharach, but
Page 102 and 103: MITTELRHEIN WINES 94 jost at a glan
Page 104 and 105: 96 nahe wines It is a joy to labor
Page 106 and 107: NAHE WINES 98 dönnhoff nahe • ob
Page 108 and 109: NAHE WINES 100 vintage happens befo
Page 110 and 111: NAHE WINES 102 GDH-172 2005 Estate
Page 112 and 113: NAHE WINES 104 helmut mathern nahe
Page 114 and 115: 106 the matter of “globalization
Page 116 and 117: NAHE WINES 108 jakob schneider nahe
Page 118 and 119: NAHE WINES 110 GJS-067 2005 Niederh
Page 120 and 121: NAHE WINES 112 Meddersheimer Rheing
Page 122 and 123: NAHE WINES 114 kruger-rumpf nahe
Page 124 and 125: NAHE WINES 116 GKF-099 2005 Scheure
Page 126 and 127: NAHE WINES 118 viti-and-viniculture
Page 128 and 129: NAHE WINES 120 THE AMAZING TRIO OF
Page 130 and 131: RHEINHESSEN WINES 122 j.u.h.a. stru
Page 132 and 133: RHEINHESSEN WINES 124 started to wo
Page 136 and 137: RHEINHESSEN WINES 128 wagner-stempe
Page 138 and 139: RHEINHESSEN WINES 130 GWG-016 2005
Page 140 and 141: RHEINHESSEN WINES 132 weingut oekon
Page 142 and 143: RHEINHESSEN WINES 134 gernot gysler
Page 144 and 145: RHEINHESSEN WINES 136 christian-wil
Page 146 and 147: 138 tasting versus drinking I once
Page 148 and 149: 140 rheingau wines Recently Jancis
Page 150 and 151: RHEINGAU WINES 142 josef leitz rhei
Page 152 and 153: RHEINGAU WINES 144 Rüdesheim Viney
Page 154 and 155: RHEINGAU WINES 146 On August 4th, 2
Page 156 and 157: RHEINGAU WINES 148 I did, and liked
Page 158 and 159: 150 why does place-specificity matt
Page 160 and 161: 152 pfalz wines In the pretty walle
Page 162 and 163: PFALZ WINES 154 müller-catoir pfal
Page 164 and 165: PFALZ WINES 156 THE NOT-DRY WINES!
Page 166 and 167: PFALZ WINES 158 josef biffar pfalz
Page 168 and 169: 160 scheurebe: what gives? Um, I ha
Page 170 and 171: PFALZ WINES 162 board; these were t
Page 172 and 173: PFALZ WINES 164 eugen müller pfalz
Page 174 and 175: PFALZ WINES 166 GEM-080H 2005 Forst
Page 176 and 177: PFALZ WINES 168 Messmers use only o
Page 178 and 179: PFALZ WINES 170 theo minges pfalz
Page 180 and 181: PFALZ WINES 172 GTM-093 2005 Gleisw
Page 182 and 183: PFALZ WINES 174 Well, guess again.
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PFALZ WINES 176 kurt darting pfalz
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PFALZ WINES 178 GDR-143 2005 Dürkh
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Back Cover Photo: Deer resting in t
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German Catalog 2006 USE THIS ONE.qxp - Michael Skurnik Wines

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