2021 Mosel and Saar – Tantalizing, Tingling, Thrilling

BY ANNE KREBIEHL MW | JUNE 13, 2023

Two thousand twenty-one was a fascinating vintage in Germany, so please forgive the alliterative headline—these attributes indeed define an interesting and outstanding year. An important note first: this is a brief report on a handful of important producers in Mosel and Saar before fuller German coverage resumes with the 2022 vintage in summer. David Schildknecht was unable to visit Mosel or Saar to taste the 2021s, hence this initial smaller, non-comprehensive foray into the world of Riesling grown on steep slate slopes – one of the world’s unique wine styles. In 2021, these wines came with a spine-tingling thrill and a freshness that harks back to glory vintages of the past. Two thousand twenty-one is a vintage for an enthusiastic “buy, buy, buy!” for all who love Riesling with real tension and drive – and that goes for dry, off-dry and sweet wines.

Cool, cool April - a Riesling vine in Wehlen, tied in the traditional heart-shape on a single stake, with buds only just burst.

The 2021 Vintage

“Two thousand twenty-one was a dream vintage for us,” said Matthias Knebel from Winningen in the Terrassenmosel when I asked his verdict at the VDP’s Weinbörse event in late April in Mainz. “If I could paint an ideal vintage, this would be it. I am a fan of fine-boned Riesling, and in vintages like 2018, 2019 and 2020, it was difficult to realize this style, whereas 2021 landed in our lap. We are so happy with this moderate ripeness and vivid, high acidity. It really was great for us.” This glowing review – given after the 2022 vintage, which was challenging for different reasons – does not mean 2021 was easy. On the contrary, growers had to be on their toes.

Two thousand twenty-one was distinctly cooler than the previous vintages, coming with copious rain, spelling disease pressure for Peronospora (downy mildew) and oidium (powdery mildew). “A demanding vintage that required much patience and selection,” is how the local growers’ association Moselwein e.V. put it. Biodynamic pioneer Clemens Busch from Pünderich in the Mittelmosel, who could not resort to systemic fungicides, was blunt: “We had extreme losses – we Ökos [an informal term for organic growers] were really affected and lost 50%. But wildly, most losses were in the entry-level and village-level wines, as the Grosse Lagen fared better because they are drier. Throughout the year, I had no idea how the wines would show, and once the wine was made, I was wowed. The quality of 2021 is wonderful for us, a classic Mosel vintage.” Across the region, losses were about 20-30%. Markus Molitor, who makes up to 130 different wines in more abundant years, made around 80.

Dorothee Zilliken's smile says it all: 2021 is a great and elegant vintage.

Dorothee Zilliken in the Saar gave a brief but insightful synopsis of the year in Saarburg: “We were so happy that the winter was very cold because nature really got to rest, and the vines entered deep dormancy. The frost also helps kill a few more pests, and really cold winters, even here in the Saar, are now rare. There was frost in early April, but that did not matter because no green shoots had appeared yet – that was lucky. Initially, we had a relatively cool summer and invested a lot of time in canopy management to ensure the best possible ventilation, removing leaves on the east side to expose the fruit to the fresh morning light rather than the hotter afternoon sun. There often was rain during summer – it felt like a wet, sad summer, but we got a really golden September. In 2021, harvest started on 11 October for the first time in years. There was no rain during harvest, and we had enough healthy grapes so that we could make a GG, something we were not able to do in 2020 because we did not have the requisite density in the grapes.”