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Messmer

“We’re always a bit later in growing season than Wachenheim, Deidesheim and Forst,” noted Gregor Messmer, “which enabled us to benefit more from the cooler temperatures that followed September’s rain. Something really curious this year,” he continued, “is that traditionally lower-acid grapes like Pinot Gris, which had to be picked early, came in at such low acidity that, since we were permitted to, we acidified some of those musts. Then along comes the first Riesling ... 9.5 and 10 grams of acid! The berries were tiny, and they must have resisted taking on water during the September rain. But we don’t exactly know why.” No question, though, that, as he further noted, “their ripe acidity keeps these Rieslings relatively light-footed despite fairly high alcohol.” Actually, I found that the same could be said about some non-Riesling Messmer 2015s. (As noted in my introduction to this report, why the acids were so ripe – i.e., predominantly tartaric – also remains something of a mystery.) Although fermentations were largely completed within five weeks, Messmer didn’t blend his top dry wines until late summer, and a number of those were only bottled immediately subsequent to my September 2016 visit. He inexplicably omitted his trio of geologically designated dry Rieslings from our tasting, and I subsequently discovered that they weren’t offered stateside. A sweet Rieslaner also eluded me. I’ll do my best to make up for those extensive omissions in my next report. (For a bit more background on Messmer and his estate, consult the introduction to my coverage of their 2014s.)

From 2015 Rhine Riesling: No Pfalz Modesty (Aug 2017) by David Schildknecht

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2013 Brut Muskateller

Color: Sparkling White

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