Moosbrugger’s 2007 Riesling Auslese is like a honey-drizzled lime and kiwi sorbet. Cooling, soothing, sappy, and refreshing, this is not terribly complex, but it is remarkably poised. A hint of apricot preserve and caramel creeps into a bright, open, almost airy finish. This too should prove a delight over the next 5-7 years, but probably not prove capable of standing up to any but the least sweet of simple fruit desserts. That these Auslese bottlings were raised entirely in tank has no doubt helped preserve their clarity and uncanny balance; Moosbrugger has frequently favored barrel-fermentation for nobly sweet wines that he considers more profound. Michael Moosbrugger did not begin his main white wine harvest – even for lighter-weight Gruner Veltliner – until mid-October. Unlike most Krems area growers he also picked nobly sweet wine, based on a late bloom of botrytis. Moosbrugger seems to have achieved some (considering the weather) surprisingly successful reds in 2007, having painstakingly cut off half of each cluster to inhibit the development of rot, then harvested prior to any of his whites. (I’ll report on those reds after I have re-tasted them from bottle. For notes on two outstanding 2006 vintage reds which have since lived up to their promise in bottle, consult my report in issue 177.)Importer: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300