Niederhäuser Hermannshöhle, Riesling, Auslese, Goldkapsel, 2018
Very pure and clear on nose, wonderful lift and clarity and flavours. And then incredibly vibrant and nimble as it trips across the palate, delivering drops of pure clean fruit. There’s no botrytis here, just clear ground minerals and flavours of fine fruit salad, pure sweet honey covered apples, proper salt and fine flowers.
critic reviews
Like its Brücke counterpart, this Auslese reflects genuinely botrytis-free grapes, said Dönnhoff, but ones that were too numerous and too high in sugar to use elsewhere, “and certainly not in the Grosses Gewächs, which would then have ended up with 14% alcohol.” Sea breeze on the nose intimates the sweet-saline savor of raw scallop that emerges on this wine’s lusciously lingering, mouthwateringly umami-rich finish. White peach and quince preserves feature throughout, reinforced on the soothingly creamy palate by nougat-like nut essences. There is an animating, juicy fresh-fruit aspect as well, and a wonderful sense of both focus and transparency to stony and ore-like nuances.