2013 Graacher Domprobst, Riesling Auslese*, Selbach-Oster, Mosel

Along with the avant-garde 'Anrecht', the Selbachs also made a more conventional, botrytised Riesling Auslese from their Domprobst vineyard in Graach downstream. The Rieslings of Graach, in the right hands, have a serene elegance about them; perhaps the product of those impossibly steep vineyards packed with chunks of black/blue slate that parodixically give such effortless wines. And such was the late harvest in 2013, that they're packed with complexity too, built up over the season; a wine for the long-haul.

The nose of this standout, 'star' Auslese has an almost salty peach character about; it's beautifully textured, svelte, with such fluidity, immaculate balance, no sense of the 115 grams of residual sugar, refreshed by the 10 grams of acidity! The botrytis evidently 'made' this extraordinary vintage, naturally concentrating all the elements, including the sugars, giving the wine a sublime texture and heavenly finish. Exotic yes, but a racehorse at the same time! Finishes more off-dry than medium!
David Berry Green