A smoky sweet pungency marks the nose of the Alzinger 2007 Riesling Smaragd Steinertal, which saturates the palate with ripe musk melon and honeydew. Notes of blond tobacco, high-toned herbal essences, inner-mouth floral perfume, and wood smoke remind one of the extent to which this site imprints its wines, and to which one might in this instance easily imagine a Gruner Veltliner to be in one’s glass. The sense of cool refreshment here defies the wine’s site-typical (and perhaps marginally botrytis-reinforced) pungency, and here is another instance in this collection of remarkable sheer extract sweetness (as the analysis says “dry,” but your palate doesn’t entirely). The kaleidoscopic range of finishing savor cannot be captured with other than mineral vocabulary (and even then, not); it is stunning. If this wine doesn’t cause you to act like Pavlov’s pooch, I suspect none ever will.Leo Alzinger senior’s lucid account of the 2007 vintage can be found in the general introduction to this report. After the extraordinary collection that he and his son, Leo, fielded from 2006, its successor – while different in personality – did not disappoint one bit. (I don’t know whether this was punishment for past sins, but I am sorry to have to report that your correspondent was not offered an opportunity to taste Riesling Smaragd bottlings from Liebenberg and Hohereck.)Importer: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300

Concentrated, firm, touched by caramel, this wine starts out intensely fruity. Then texture, mineral and fruit skins come in to play. The wine is impressively complete, its acidity ratcheted up a notch by the fine floral, green and white fruit flavors.——R.V.(7/1/2009)—— 92