Harvested December 19 after having been shrouded in plastic film since late October (but left open to the ground until December, he notes), Leitzs 2009 Rudesheimer Klosterlay Riesling Eiswein betrays fungal, prickly, slightly musty as well as caramel aspects of botrytis in the nose and its extremely sweet pear-like fruit flirts with over-ripeness. This is also surprisingly soft in feel and lacking in cut for an Eiswein, which perhaps if it displayed striking delicacy or purity such as deep frost can also convey would be more forgivable. That said, the wines soothing finish informed by caramelized pear and peach is undeniably generous. I would plan on drinking it within a very few years, though perhaps it will surprise at that point by suggesting greater potential. ”Yes it was dry,” says Johannes Leitz about the late summer and early autumn of 2009, “but drought stress? Who said anything about drought stress?” Evidently he either has a different definition for that condition or had different experiences from some of his colleagues, but I let the matter drop, and the quality of the wines here speaks eloquently both to Leitzs belief that nature delivered an almost ideal combination this year of near over-watering followed by dry heat (which he called “the parachute that saved us from a crash landing”), and to his success in what for others was a manifestly challenging season on the Rudesheimer Berg. Leitzs team began picking October 6 and continued for almost exactly one month. Incidentally, after working for nearly two decades from an expansion of his original cellar under the family home in suburban Rudesheim, Leitz will soon have completed a large new facility nearby.Importer: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300