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

Theo Minges was “thrown in the cold water early”
at the tender age of twenty. His father came latterly to
viticulture, having originally been a painter, a sensibility
which made the transition to viticulture rather comfortable,
in Theo’s opinion. During the period of euphoria
over the new crossings, Minges stayed a classical course,
planting only Scheurebe and Kerner, the two most similar
to Riesling. Minges was an island of classicism and
must feel prophetic now, as so many of the crossings are
being hacked out of the ground.
Theo told me something that made me glad. He’s
planting more and more Riesling each year, thanks to me
(of all people), as I’ve been a good customer for them.
Ain’t that sweet? I never pause to consider my patronage
might actually make things possible for the growers.
Because of me and you a great guy like Theo Minges is literally
en-couraged to produce more Riesling; that makes
me feel useful and happy.
Most of the vineyards are on gentle slopes of deep
loess-loam, though all Riesling is planted on chalky,
stony ground. Unusually, the Flemlinger Zechpeter site
is planted in Riesling from MOSEL clones, planted 38
years ago by Theo’s father. Everything is hand-harvested—not
a necessity here, as the land isn’t steep—and
many separate passes are made through the vineyards.
The grapes are pressed in a pneumatic press with very
little pressure. Musts are rarely centrifuged; Minges
prefers to let them sit overnight to clarify. Natural
yeasts are usually used, though Minges has no ideological
objection to using cultured yeasts if necessary.
Fermentations are quite slow, at least four weeks, and
no wine is ever racked before January; each wine
spends at least a month on its primary lees to help them
clarify and build complexity. “You have to leave the
wines on their lees patiently,” he says. “Otherwise,
they become too reductive, too smooth; all their structure
comes from acidity alone.”
Pfalz-meets-Mosel in these high-flying minerally-leesy
minges at a glance:
wines. Extraordinary value across the board The best,
best, best quality large-format wines I have ever tasted ANYWHERE.
Intriguingly they’re not like typical Pfalz wines, but rather
how the wines taste:
like some Pfalz-Mosel hybrid. They tend to run compact
and chalky, with crunchy vivid flavors. And there are no better values anywhere in this
offering!
GTM-090L 2005 Riesling Halbtrocken, 1.0 Liter
“You could easily offer this as a Spätlese feinherb,” he says, with ample justification. As
always it’s Champagne-like, but with more yellow elements in 2005; superbly balanced,
brilliantly clear, spring-water crisp; the wine is even complex — at this price! Schwarz
tasted through the entire collection a few days before I did, and said “Super vintage;
only one problem: the Liter wines are too good!”
SOMMELIER ALERT! SOS: 0 (now - 5 years)
GTM-089L 2005 Riesling, 1.0 Liter +
Interestingly the more sweet wine tastes greener; this is scintillating, digital; has a hiss
of brilliance like sizzlers on a ride-cymbal; mineral and lime and spearmint and all
resolved into an apple-skin finish that threads the needle.
SOS: 2 (now - 10 years)
GTM-091 2005 Gleisweiler Hölle Riesling Kabinett
Really Champagne-like now; Vertus fruit with Cramant oolong and lime-blossom;
waves of fruit breaking over waves of mineral breaking over waves of foamy plumblossom;
has a seductive saltiness on the adamantly mineral finish.
SOS: 2 (5-16 years)
GTM-092 2005 Gleisweiler Hölle Riesling Spätlese +
Orange-blossom now, mirabelle and balsam; palate is fervently cool and exquisitely jasmine-y
with a discreet talc and white chocolate note, but the surging force stops you in
your tracks, the fidgety interplay, the sense of chords of flavor constantly inverted.
Amazing wine.
SOMMELIER ALERT! SOS: 2 (7-20 years)
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PFALZ WINES