2019 Westhofener Kirchspiel Spatlese

Vines planted 1964. 100% healthy grapes (ie not shrivelled and not botrytised) from just 20 rows and harvested at 94 Oechsle for Spätlese (could have been Auslese) because the acidity was so good in 2019. Just 25 hl/ha. Sulphites had been added in early February and this made it a bit difficult to get the full panoply of aromas here. Cask sample. Wild, tangy herbal aroma, more herbal than citrus, lime leaf and more obvious stony/stone-dust minerality than in the Kirchspiel Auslese, even with all the fruit intensity. This is eye-wateringly fresh but has the flavour of just-ripe pineapple on the palate. Almost tropical even though the acidity is so marked. Very sweet-fruited as well as sweet. Immense concentration and length. Intense but perfectly balanced. As it opens up and warms up a little in the glass, there’s a lovely bite of bitter orange flavour that lingers, all tied up with the acidity. Silky texture counterbalanced by the crystalline purity, caressing length, deep as well as long. This really shows the character of the vintage: ripe fruit and high acidity. (JH)