Mosel Riesling 2016 Part 2: Longuich to Graach

BY DAVID SCHILDKNECHT | JANUARY 30, 2018

From Longuich to Graach

I discussed the travails and eventual triumph of vintage 2016 on the Mosel in my introduction to part one of this coverage, as well as some of the mysteries that still surround it and the personalities and aging potential of the resulting wines. The wet first half of 2016 saw rainfall at or near the averages for a full year, which disturbed the flowering and in many sectors unleashed outbreaks of peronospora (a.k.a. downy mildew) that were unprecedented even in the experience of veteran growers. In late July the weather abruptly turned dry and hot and these conditions extended into a September that was warmer in Bernkastel than in any year since good record-keeping began there in 1876. By that month’s end, vines with deep enough roots in all but a few especially exposed and rocky sites had managed to catch up in must weight to recent averages.

Then came another dramatic turn in the weather as clear, chilly weather set in through mid-November, permitting methodical harvesting under conditions ideal for preserving what in most instances were ample but by no means high acid levels while allowing ripe flavors and aromas to build. Estates that were most seriously afflicted by downy mildew (and a few that were strafed by hail, such as in Graach) suffered significant crop losses, but nearly every grower I visited expressed delight with his or her 2016 quality, and quite a few turned in collections to challenge those of 2015.