2009 Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Auslese

Bottled only the September week that I tasted it, Selbach-Oster half-fuder’s (500 liters) worth “three-star” 2009 Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese*** displays a remarkably buttery texture well-matched to the sensationally saliva-inducing, savory, saline, browned butter and lobster shell reduction that suffuse its opulent amalgam of apple, quince, preserves, pear nectar, and pineapple. With wafting heliotrope and honeysuckle perfume uncannily capturing the spirit of its nearly weightless, creamy palate performance and its salinity and edge of fresh fruit acidity making one’s jaw positively tremble, it’s no wonder that neither botrytis nor sweetness come to mind, even though this harbors lots of both. Salted caramel, essence of heady floral perfume, and unlabored concentration of the aforementioned fruit and mineral essences don’t just bring down the curtain on this magnificent performance, they bring down the house! It deserves to be staged over the next four decades. If this was suffering from bottling I couldn’t detect any clues, but in that case it represents an even more amazing performance that I thought. “The autumn was super, with little stress,” remarked Johannes Selbach, who is more often seen furrowing his exceedingly high brow when describing even a highly successful harvest! What there was of botrytis, he reports, came late, and he reported that what rain there was in November was of negligible significance. Where many 2009 collections disappointed slightly as they reached the limits of possible vintage Oechsle, the Selbach-Oster collection proceeded from strength to profound strength. Most of the wines were bottled in May, but some of the dry and nobly sweet lots were very late even to finish fermenting and a few had not yet been bottled even when I tasted in September. True to an intention he stated last year, Selbach has bottled without Pradikat the fruits of block-pickings from his three top parcels, each named on its label. (For more about the principles involved, consult in particular my note on the 2005 “Schmitt” Auslese – in issue 169 – and that on this year’s dry “Schmitt” Spatlese below.) This year’s collection continues the trend for wines from Zeltingen’s Schlossberg to shine with special complexity and elegance after the many years in which they seemed destined at this address to take a back seat to those of Sonnenuhr. Not only were the vineyards of Zeltingen among the most celebrated on the Mosel during the 19th and early 20th century, but Karl Heinrich Koch epochal survey of 1881 places the Schlossberg as among the Mosel, Saar, and Ruwer’s top 11 sites, and one can appreciate this while savoring a wine like this year’s “Schmitt” trocken. Importers: There are a few regional importers of certain Selbach wines, but the majority (and those whose prices are noted above) are Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300

The Selbachs’ 2009 Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese smells complexly of spiced apple, lily, narcissus, sassafras, musk, and white raisin. It may give up something in elegance, refinement, textural allure, or finishing juiciness vis-a-vis typically exemplary performances chez Selbach of this site and degree of ennoblement, but it offers a dynamic, interactive multiplicity of flavors with pungent penetration and exotic intrigue. Look for 20-25 years of fascination. Dec 2009, www.robertparker.com