2016 Riesling Kabinett feinherb Schieferkristall

Proprietor Albert Behler (first cousin to longtime proprietor Christoph Tyrell) has enlisted Rheingau native and wine industry veteran Julia Lübcke as general manager, while Sascha Dannhäuser, a veteran at the estate but never its cellarmaster, had that title conferred on him in anticipation of the 2016 harvest. There are ambitious plans for investments in new equipment; renovating the cellar facilities; building a tasting facility; and replanting sections of vineyard. The estate is also rethinking how its wines will be marketed, with the most dramatic change expected to be the withholding of each year’s Grosses Gewächs for at least three years in bottle before release, in keeping with which plan the 2011 is currently being offered alongside the estate’s other wines from 2016. (Alternatively, it’s possible that in the future an initial tranche of each vintage’s Grosses Gewächs will be offered to the market at the time of the VDP’s late summer unveiling of the new Grosse Gewächse, and the rest held back.) Regarding wine style, though, Lübcke avowed that what she terms the “classical” range of styles familiar from Christoph Tyrell’s 30-year tenure will be perpetuated, and thus emphasis will continue to be placed on the separate vinification of each parcel and picking so as to maximize the opportunity to achieve synergistic cuvées.

The 2016 harvest here began in the second week of October but extended into early November. “We could pick for a couple of days, then pause for a couple of days,” remarked Dannhäuser of the consistently favorable picking conditions. Acid levels were only slightly lower than those in 2015, and the wines project ample animation as well as juicy refreshment. In fact, considering the staff changes that have taken place at this address since 2014, the quality I have tasted from the last two vintages has been relatively reassuring. But as I am confident the new team here agrees, their famous slope is capable of greater achievement. (Further details about this estate, including its somewhat complicated recent history, as well as an explanation of its labeling practices, can be found in the introductions to my coverage of its vintage 2014 and 2015 wines.)