German Riesling 2023 Part One

Nothing is more fundamental to the world than the interplay of light and darkness, and this wine brings that into your glass in a completely compelling way. There’s an incredible intensity to the minerality of this dry riesling. It’s a giant of orginality, but lies at the upper edge of medium-bodied, resulting in a fantastic sense of lightness. Extraordinary focus and precision in the enchanting and totally fascinating finish (100) STUART PIGOTT, jamessuckling.com

The 2023 Riesling Westhofener Morstein Grosses Gewächs still flickers with the slightest flinty reduction on its cool nose, but with air, lemon moves in and stays center stage. The palate is just as lemony and immediately projects cooling, moist, chalky depth. The palate is slender, delving deep into that chalkiness. Scented with lemon and bedded on soothing, citric yeast, the finish is totally zesty, precise, strait-laced, pristine and very long. (98) ANNE KREBIEHL MW, Vinous Media

Compared to the Brunnenhäuschen, Wittmann's 2023 Morstein Riesling GG is light and clear but also still very reduced in the fresh and mineral, even savory and precise nose, which is still restrained in the fruit. Pure and extremely salty on the palate, with a very firm and grippy structure and an almost dry/drying minerality, this Morstein draws saliva. It seems more austere and sinewy here and now than the Brunnenhäuschen, and it's still extremely influenced by limestone. This is a great and promising wine. Tasted at the Vorpremiere VDP.Grosses Gewächs in Wiesbaden in August 2024.
In another tasting two days earlier at the domaine, the 2023 Morstein showed a wonderfully chalky, elegantly fruity and balanced nose. Pure and with citrusy freshness as well as chalky salinity, this is a ravishingly fine, elegant and clever Morstein that is light-years away from the abundance and power of the 2000s and early 2010s. This is vibrant and stimulating salty and truly reminiscent of Champagnes from the Côte des Blancs. A magnificent Morstein! (96+) STEPHAN REINHARDT, Wine Advocate

Bold, compact and concentrated, this astonishing dry riesling GG makes a very serious statement. It also remains cool and restrained, with a glittering thread of flint winding through the textural complexity on the medium- to full-bodied palate. Try to be patience, because this is delicious now, but the tension in the extremely long finish and the youthfulness of the aromas speak of wine with decades of life ahead of it. (97) STUART PIGOTT, jamessuckling.com

The 2023 Riesling Westhofener Aulerde Grosses Gewächs is made from vines planted in the rich marls Aulerde in 1949 and 1951, at a then-unusual density of 8,000 vines per hectare. Wittmann says that this is the earliest ripening site, yielding tiny, ripe grapes year after year. A touch of mellow, ripe, yellow apple appears alongside gentle lemon on the nose. The palate also has that beautiful yellow apple spice and lovely juiciness and texture. The serene and smooth yet hearty palate radiates coolness. ANNE KREBIEHL MW, Vinous Media

Wittmann's Westhofen 2023 Aulerde Riesling GG continues the top performances of the last five years. It has a deep, concentrated, fresh and citrusy nose with substantial saltiness and still some reduction, reminiscent of clay, lime and lime chutney, and a dense and tightly woven palate. This is a fleshy, juicy and concentrated, very youthful but elegant and balanced Aulerde with great potential and long-lasting minerality and savoriness, but it's also generous and elegant in its fruit expression. STEPHAN REINHARDT, Wine Advocate