Günther Steinmetz 2008 Riesling

The world could wait no longer.

We are here for more than just inexpensive Rieslings that have been chaptalized to look pretty but have no character. We are here for more. We want to buy a bottle of a simple house wine and be utterly satisfied.

Here it is.

The Günther Steinmetz 2008 Riesling from Germany's Mosel region comes in a liter bottle. We are not scared anymore. We know from Darting's 2008 Dürkheimer Nonnengarten Kabinett that a liter bottle is not a bad thing. It means inexpensive, but not necessarily cheap.

The aroma of the Steinmetz estate Riesling is primarily citrus fruit, but with a peculiar whiff of smoke and hay. Quite charming. We attribute this to the blue slate soil of the Mülheimer Sonnenlay vineyard, which provided most of the fruit for this estate Riesling. Wines born from slate often carry with them a light smoky aroma.

Another typical character of Sonnelay Rieslings from Steinmetz is their sharp acidity. In the case of the 2008 Riesling the pronounced acidity along with the minerality are exquisitely balanced with ripe grapefruit and apple. It has a medium length with the lingering freshness of bitter grapefruit. This inexpensive Riesling has a character of its own and is an excellent companion for fish and light meat dishes. It is perfect to drink now but will surely develop further through 2015.

The label of this wine was a one-off, serving as transition between the old and the new label, which will be on the 2009 release of this wine.