Critic ratings
robert_parker
2020
Rating:
95
–95
Boxler's 2020 Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg offers a clear, deep, pure and complex bouquet with perfectly ripe fruit aromas intertwined with the beautifully flinty and floral or herbal terroir notes of the super steep Sommerberg. The fruit is virtually perfectly ripe and irresistibly aromatic. On the palate, this is a perfectly round and balanced Riesling with dense fruit intertwined with mineral texture, density and grip. The finish reveals very fine tannins and impressive intensity, but nothing here is too loud, too willing or too rich. This is a beauty with highly finessed acidity and serene character, despite its serious complexity. This Sommerberg gives great pleasure immediately. 14% stated alcohol (which isn't noticeable). Natural cork. Tasted at the domaine in April 2022.
robert_parker
2019
Rating:
94
–94
The 2019 Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg offers an intense but pure and stony bouquet with ripe lemon aromas. Fresh and vital on the palate, this is a linear, fresher style compared to 2020, and the wine is still quite tight at this stage but also quite creamy in its texture. The finish is intense, firm and still biting, but it shows promising intensity and aging potential. 14% stated alcohol. Natural cork. Tasted at the domaine in April 2022.
robert_parker
2018
Rating:
93
–93
The 2018 Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg shows a clear, deep and complex, very fine and elegant but generous nose of fruity, floral and iodine notes. Full-bodied and rich but fine and elegant on the palate, this is a Sommerberg with a persistently saline finish with attacking and slightly drying tannins. 14% stated alcohol. Natural cork. Tasted at the domaine in April 2022.
robert_parker
2014
Rating:
93
–93
Sourced from two parcels in the same altitude but separated by 400 meters, the 2014 Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg offers a very pure and rather coolish, crystalline and lemon-flavored bouquet that indicates a good ripeness and fruit concentration. Full-bodied and very juicy on the palate, this is a pretty intense but also piquant and finessed Sommerberg. It combines the ripeness and density of 40-year-old vines Riesling with the freshness of 320 meters altitude. Still very young, this Sommerberg will benefit from further bottle ageing.
robert_parker
2015
Rating:
95
–95
Boxler's 2015 Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg opens with the discreet charm and aristocratic distinction of a great wine. Very pure, clear, fine and elegant on the nose, with fine stony and herbal flavors but also ripe stone fruit and floral aromas, the 2015 tells the story of its origin in the glass in an excitingly subtle yet deep way. The palate is great! It is intense and juicy, nicely concentrated and ripe, with a touch of sweetness but gorgeous finesse, vitality and piquancy. The finish is pure and salty and develops a fascinating juiciness that explodes in the finish. This is not a wine for mouthfeel drinkers, but it is surely one of the finest, most delicate and balanced Rieslings you can find from this vintage. The combination of concentration, complexity, structure, minerality and sweetness (due to the low acidity, higher alcohol and extract) could hardly be better.
robert_parker
2017
Rating:
92
–92
Pure and stony on the nose, the 2017 Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg is intense, tightly woven, dry, concentrated and dense on the palate. The finish is salty, tight and long but also fruity. Very promising, but it needs time. Bottled in August, tasted October 2018.
robert_parker
2016
Rating:
93
–93
The 2016 Riesling Grand Cru Sommerberg is pure and flinty on the piquant, spicy/herbal and floral nose. This is the pure expression of granite in Riesling! Hints of pineapple and other tropical fruit flavors such as mangos are found in the far background. Rich and round on the palate, this is an intense, textured and juicy Riesling with lots of tropical fruit flavors and ripe, perfectly integrated acidity. This is very fine despite its intensity and ripeness. The salty finish is long and aromatic, and you get tannins rather than acidity. Impressive. Tasted October 2018.
robert_parker
2022
Rating:
93
–93
From two plots harvested at the same time, the 2022 Grand Cru Sommerberg Riesling opens with a pure, refined, subtle and subversively intense nose with spicy and herbal notes. Lush and intense on the palate, this is a rich and dense, saline and complex, very long and elegant Sommerberg with perfectly ripe and concentrated fruit and a long and intense finish. 13.5% stated alcohol. Natural cork. Tasted at the domaine in April 2024.
robert_parker
2021
Rating:
94
–94
The 2021 Grand Cru Sommerberg Riesling is intense and concentrated on the nose. Tight, fresh and juicy on the palate, this is a full-bodied, concentrated, tight, grippy and saline Riesling with a very long, intense and stimulating finish. Natural cork. Tasted at the domaine in April 2024.
