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Weiser-Künstler

This is another of those estates repeatedly cursed in 2017, first by huge losses to the April frost, then by August hail, notably in newly acquired parcels of the Trarbacher Taubenhaus and adjacent Schlossberg, and finally by the need to painstakingly eliminate rot-tainted clusters at harvest. But what got into bottle is impressive, not to mention more than capable of perpetuating Weiser and Künstler’s reputation as among their region’s most dedicated and skillful growers. Like their friend Gernot Kollmann at Immich-Batterieberg, they have been utilizing a significant share of used barriques, since impeccably cared-for old Mosel fuders aren’t easy to come by, and that situation worked to their advantage in 2017, since some of their best lots would have been too small to vinify in larger barrels. Picking began on September 20, but even working as rapidly as was feasible, periodic rainy interruptions and the need for selectivity meant that the crew couldn’t finish harvesting until October 20. “Unfortunately,” Alexandra Künstler said sadly, “while there was some beneficial botrytis at the beginning, it got worse as time went on,” and the job of culling rot thus became more onerous and dispiriting. Bottling took place as usual in late April, except for the dry Ellergrub “Grosse Eule” and dry Gaispfad, which were bottled in August and not separated from their primary lees until just before then. Speaking of dryness, in keeping with what seems to be a growing fashion among German Riesling growers, three of the five latest Weiser-Künstler trockens are radically so. Another tendency among dry wines at the estate is toward a slightly longer (up to a day) pre-fermentative skin contact. (For more on this estate’s origins, methodology and vineyard holdings, consult the introduction to my account of its 2014s.)

From Multifarious 2017 Mosels, Part 1: Winningen to Wehlen (Jan 2020) by David Schildknecht

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2017 Riesling

Release Price: $24

Color: White

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