1996 Riesling Clos St Hune
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Tasting notes
Full yellow-gold, deep for its age. Nose began with very ripe suggestions of honeycomb, toffee, maple syrup--even a suggestion of nut skin. Would inexperienced tasters have written this off as prematurely oxidized without giving it a chance to blossom with air? Ten minutes in the glass brought much more vibrant aromas of peach, Christmas spices and orange oil, and an impression of powerful acidity (ten grams per liter, if I recall correctly from my first tasting of this wine from bottle at Trimbach). Densely packed and brisk in the mouth, with lovely sweetness of stone fruit flavors complicated by minerals and a chewy saline quality. This dry, bracing wine began with a slight sour edge but the strong acidity harmonized with air. In the recorked bottle 72 hours later, the wine hummed with citrus and stone fruit flavors and showed no oxidative notes.
Critic scores
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Wine Spectator
The Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
The world-renowned Riesling Clos Ste. Hune is produced from 40 year old vines in a 1.38 hectare parcel (3.4 acres) located within the Rosacker grand cru. Some of the finest Rieslings I have ever tasted have hailed from this tiny plot. Crisp, youthful aromas of lemons are found in the medium-bodied, dense, and highly-focused 1996 Riesling Clos Ste. Hune. On the palate it offers extraordinarily powerful layers of lime-drenched minerals, a vibrant satiny-texture, and huge richness. This unbelievably long wine is massively structured, concentrated, and backward. It will require patience. Drink this gem between 2005 and 2015. Importer: Esprit Du Vin French Wine Merchants & Select European Estates, 48 Harbor Park Drive, Port Washington, NY 11050; www.edvwines.com
A great Riesling, balancing intense, pure flavors of apple, quince, peach and apricot with a filigreed steel structure and a smoky, stony element from the site. Intense and ethereal at the same time, it melts in the mouth, leaving the essence of its flavors on the long finish. Drink now through 2012. 750 cases made. WineSpectator.com
The world-renowned Riesling Clos Ste. Hune is produced from 40 year old vines in a 1.38 hectare parcel (3.4 acres) located within the Rosacker grand cru. Some of the finest Rieslings I have ever tasted have hailed from this tiny plot. Crisp, youthful aromas of lemons are found in the medium-bodied, dense, and highly-focused 1996 Riesling Clos Ste. Hune. On the palate it offers extraordinarily powerful layers of lime-drenched minerals, a vibrant satiny-texture, and huge richness. This unbelievably long wine is massively structured, concentrated, and backward. It will require patience. Drink this gem between 2005 and 2015. Pierre Rovani, Wine Advocate June 1999