I am back in the States and still processing the latest wine adventure to shake my soul. Over the next few weeks I'm going to try to distill what I experienced and how you can go out, find these wines and experience, at least the most important part of my trip: the sense of place.
My first week was solely concentrated on Germany and in particular the 2008 vintage. The challenge for this vintage is that it follows what many consider to be one of the greatest vintages in the history of Germany (2007 if you are not good at math). The 2007 vintage is opulent yet balanced, unctuous but pure...to some, almost perfect. 2007's have depth, beauty, substance and a long live ahead of them, they are worth finding. 2008 is pure, elegant, and delicate, when we tried the two vintages side by side the 2007's seemed over-ripe and too big, while the 2008's seemed airy, light, and pretty. Throughout the five regions (Rheinhessen, Pfalz, Nahe, Mosel, and Rheingau) I visited the vintage showed similar characteristics: focus, high acid, a true expression of the soil and delicate. The greatest thing about German wines is that the majority of them are 100% unadulterated. The grapes are allowed to express themselves, the terroir and the vintage to such an exactness that you might be moved to tears, as I was on a number of occasions.
The growers said the 2008 vintage was a challenge and that if one was patient, dedicated in their vineyards, and did not have knee jerk reactions to the weather then they were rewarded. I feel that good growers do this every vintage, so I asked them what was really a challenge. After a bit of awkwardness most said that 2007 provided such ripeness and what seemed to be perfect conditions that the growers were not accustomed to a cooler grower season and such elevated acidity. The acidity in the 2008 vintage is VERY pronounced, with many producers de-acidifying their wines, but the wines have enough "stuffing" in them to not be lemon juice. Unlike 2007 most growers did not produce very many Auslese, Beerenausleses, or Trockenbeerenausleses, but the ones we tried were lovely. We did try a few ice wines that sheared the enamal off my teeth, but showed amazing againg potential, so I bought some for my cellar. 2008 is a vintage that harkens back to when "Global Warming" was not even a thought in Germany and growers always struggled to achieve enough ripeness. I really enjoy this vintage and feel that its delicacy, beauty, and refinement are all qualities that make me love the wines from Germany. So, as you see the 2008's hit the shelves of your local wine shop and pop up on wine lists give them a swirl....you will have a giant smile on your face after the first sip, and if you are a German wine hater, get over yourself buy a bottle. You will be happy you did!
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