2023 Weingut PJ Kühn, Riesling Trocken “Jacobus” Rheingau, Germany.
The 2023 Jacobus Trocken is a brilliant dry Riesling with an elegant finessed style in the glass with a taught crisp frame and mineral focused details, it shows off the vintage and region well, giving fresh lime, apricot, muskmelon, mango and green apple fruits, along with subtle white flowers, a steely and flinty note, verbena and chamomile in a tension filled medium bodied palate. This was excellent and dynamic stuff, gaining depth, texture and complexity with every sip. I was last night this part of the Rheingau region in 2016, but sadly missed the chance to try any of the Kühn wines, something I plan to do, the next time there! The grapes selected for this Jacobus bottling are all from organic parcels on the Kuhn estate, ranging from plots close to the Rhein, where you find a ripe expression and those higher slate soil areas in the Taunus Mountains, that gives the intensity and backbone found here. Peter Bernard Kühn crafts this wine from biodynamic vines with the grapes seeing a whole cluster slow pressing for several hours and then settled at least 24 hours before being fermented with natural yeasts in stainless steel and large oak barrels on the full lees until the following Spring. After close to 9 months the wine is bottled to preserve vitality, as seen here in this beautiful and distinctive bottling. These wines see a limited importation to the States and not always easy to find, but I highly recommend keeping an eye out for them, which I myself plan on doing too.
Weingut Peter Jakob Kühn, which I haven’t had too many times, but is a highly regarded label and a small family-run German wine estate located in Oestrich-Winkel in the Rheingau region of Germany, where I have spent some time. It is owned and has been operated by the Kühn family for over 230 years now, and is currently led by the 11th generation (Peter Jakob and Angela Kühn, along with son Peter Bernhard, who is head of winemaking, his wife Viktoria, and sister Sandra) of the family. The farming here is all certified biodynamic, being a Demeter producer for more than 20 years, focusing on deep root systems and vibrant soil health, where the vines thrive and produce exceptional grapes. PJ Kühn is well known for their dry, structured, mineral-driven Rieslings that are made with spontaneous wild-yeast fermentations and extended aging on the lees, which is very on display here in this 2023 Trocken. The winery now cultivates about 20 hectares, mostly Riesling, plus some Pinot Noir for their Spätburgunder and they do a sparkling Sekt too, which I look forward to trying. The main parcels are in premier cru (Erste Lage and Grosse Lage) sites like Doosberg, Lenchen, Klosterberg, and Hallgartener Hendelberg, with a remarkable array of soils, including clay, sand, loam, loess, slate and quartz. The Jacobus Trocken, which comes from vines ranging from 5 to 45 years old is a great way to discover the magic at PJ Kühn and this part of the famous Rheingau region, one of my favorite places on earth.
($45 Est.) 94 Points, grapelive