vinous 2017
Rating: 91 –91
“The idea had some appeal that ‘we need a dry wine from each top site,’” relates Helmut Dönnhoff of his and son Cornelius’ decision to render a Grosses Gewächs from the Krötenpfuhl (“toads’ sump”). This pebbly site above Bad Kreuznach has been protected from either urban encroachment or the use of pesticides and fertilizers because it’s the location of that city’s pumping station and of a spring that supplies much of its water. (Dönnhoffs’ decision to render a Grosses Gewächs involved registration of Krötenpfuhl as a VDP-“Grosse Lage,” which means any future dry wine bottled from this site by a VDP member is also supposed to be a Grosses Gewächs.) The combination of relative coolness and excellent drainage without water stress that suits this site so well to sweet Kabinett, is probably also what renders a dry incarnation, like this one, unusually generous and fruit-dominated for a Grosses Gewächs. “But at the same time it has power,” suggests Dönnhoff, using the English adjective – which makes me cringe, but nowadays this is how many German vintners want to speak of their dry Riesling offspring. Pear, white peach and Persian melon are alluringly wreathed in buddleia and peony not only on the nose but also inner-mouth, where 12.9% alcohol serves for fullness but no heaviness. A palpable sense of density is allied with flattering creaminess. The finish is, as advertised, forceful, but the persistence of floral notes is striking. There is just enough sense of tang and a hint of underlying stone to serve for a modicum of refreshment and intrigue. As my numerical notation indicates, I’m not convinced this will be a Grosses Gewächs for extended cellaring. But there has probably never been a Krötenpfuhl Riesling like it: “In my experience, going back decades,” notes Dönnhoff, “Rieslings from this site were always rendered with at least a little sweetness.” So we’ll all have to wait and see what the future in bottle brings.