Taste Notes
Primary Notes: Apple / Pear Lemon / Lime Jasmine
Secondary Notes: Honeycomb / Beeswax
Tertiary Notes:
Wine Structure
Body: Light
Dryness: Sweet
Acidity:
Tannin: Light
Alcohol (%):
Origin & Awards
Origin: Mosel, Germany
Maker: Willi Schaefer Graacher
Grape: Riesling
Fermentation: Slight Wood
Awards:
Serving Recommendations
Decanting:
Serving Temperature: Best served between 10–12 degrees
Asian Food Pairing:
Western Food Pairing: Pair with tuna peaches (pêches au thon), roast chicken with peaches (poulet rôti aux pêches), or French cheesecake.
Description
Willi Schaefer Graacher Domprobst Riesling Spätlese #10 2020
Known to Schaefer amateurs as the firm, stoney one. A mineral and flinty bouquet with fruity pear and apple notes. The juicy palate possesses concentrated flavours of dried apricot, honeyed green apple, white pear, and hints of wet stones and almonds. Well-structured with a bright acidity and delicate sweetness, closing in an intense and saline finish.
Top tip: This wine's got fantastic ageing potential, so cellar it until that special occasion in 2023 or later!
100% Riesling sourced from Graacher Dompropst, which rises steeply directly above the village of Graach at 120–260 metres above sea level. The vineyard got its name because the Trier Cathedral Provost was due one-third of the tithes of wine from Graach. Due to its topography and south-southwest exposure, Domprobst gets plenty of sunlight and is well protected from cold winds and frosts. The warming of the stony, argillaceous slate soils cause a uniform and full ripening of the grapes. The grapes are hand-harvested, gently pressed whole cluster, and spontaneously ferment and age in large old Fuder barrels.
7.5 %
AWARDS & ACCOLADES
This has a wicked reductive edge now, so either don’t touch this for a long time, or let it open up in the glass (or, yes, decanter!). When it does finally give way, soak up the amazing, stoney nuances, freshly squeezed Japanese plums and Korean pears. Medium-bodied and tightly constructed on the palate, bound by a flinty texture with pointed acidity and crunchy lemon zest. Medium-long on the finish.
View from the Cellar Issue #80, by John Gilman/USA - 93 POINTS The AP #10 Spätlese from the Domprobst vineyard is also superb in 2018. The bouquet is bright and beautifully expressive for a young Domprobst, wafting from the glass in a blend of pear, apple, violets, bee pollen, a lovely base of slate and a gentle topnote of wild yeasts. On the palate the wine is fullish and nicely succulent on the attack, with truly beautiful purity to the fruit, fine soil signature and a long, perfectly balanced and zesty. I love the backend slate-acid duality that defines the backend of this wine. This is a Domprobst Spätlese that will only need three or four years in the cellar to really start drinking with style and generosity. (Drink between 2023-2075)
Harmonious, with prominent slate details adding to the crunchy texture, while apricot, pear and dandelion aromas and flavors provide a charming aspect. Tangy acidity makes this refreshing and delivers a long, lingering finish. Will develop nicely.
- 17+/20 POINTS Smoky mineral and herbal citrus, suggesting spontaneous fermentation, already complex in terms of the aroma despite its youth. On the palate, sweet flavours of ripe lemon and apricot, generous in fruit and with plenty of freshness to balance. Viscous texture and long succulent finish with just a hint of spice, beautifully integrated freshness. Needs time to gain complexity on the palate but it has delicious citrus purity.