2012 Weingut Donnhoff, Riesling, Estate Trocken, Nahe Germany.
This 2012 Dry Estate Riesling is clearly and most definitely a baby Grosses Gewachs (Grand Cru) and shows amazing drive and quality throughout, this is a steal, don’t even think about it, get yourself a case or two! Donnhoff is one of Germany’s great wineries and without question these 2012 vintage Rieslings are going to be highly sought after and prized, and this Estate Trocken is just plain gorgeous and very entertaining. The nose is slow to get open at this stage, but with coaxing it delivers white flowers, hints of rose petals, mint leaves and steely mineral tones along with orange and stone fruit leading to an electrically charged palate of sizzling intensity with bright lime, green apple, peach and tangerine along with subtle tropical notes, wet stones, flinty mineral spice and tangy nectarine. The acidity is fantastic, lighting this wine up while allowing dense extract and fleshiness to show through, and I bet this little Grand Cru will age well, it should develop and gain greatly over the next decade, bravo, this is an impressive gift to us Riesling fiends. The crisp and clear finish is mouth watering with a briny saline note and a round creamy element settles in on the aftertaste, simply stunning, this rivals Premier Cru Chablis for class easy.
($25 Est.) 93+ Points, grapelive
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