2002 Riesling Smaragd Achleiten

Toni Bodenstein's riverside home and winery were inundated in the summer of 2002.Replacements and renovations (including some improvements to gravity feed and gentler handling of fruit and young wine) had proceeded to a remarkable degree by the time I visited, but the more lasting effects of massive erosion and nearly 100 collapsed stone abutments--above all in the great, steep Achleiten and Klaus vineyards--are neither measurable nor reparable in the short term.Nevertheless, it was impossible for Bodenstein to suppress his inherent optimism, and the collection he bottled this year offered sufficient grounds for an upbeat attitude.(Vin Divino) Also recommended: 2002 Riesling Smaragd Steinriegl.