While picking the foregoing unseemly Auslese, the crew picked out a few hundred bottles worth of the best looking bunches and berries to form a 2004 Westhofener Moorstein Riesling Auslese “S”. The overripe peaches, gardenia, vanilla icing and musk oil are carried over, along with melon, honey, roses, and orange blossom. In the mouth, a luscious orange juice citricity adds refreshing pungency to the aroma and helps counteract the sugar on the palate. The combination of honeyed richness, icing-like sweetness, and vivacious acidity puts one in mind of Eiswein. The finish exhibits high-class botrytis but also just pure, juicy, lip-smacking satisfaction. Both in early and again in late November the work of picking out and sorting botrytis berries went on in the Moorstein, in the end sacrificing two and a half acres toward a nobly sweet end.Importers: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300 and Frederick Wildman, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700

Like so many of the top growers in 2004, Wittmann opines that it was tough to get Auslese this year, then promptly lays two grand successes on the table! His 2004 Westhofener Moorstein Riesling Auslese – from entirely botrytised fruit harvested late in November – smells of musk, overripe peach and pear, gardenia, and vanilla icing. On the palate, it tastes as overwhelmingly sweet as its aromas suggest, yet somehow this wine manages to carry it off, with its over-the-top florality and exotic, decadent size projected into a flagrantly gaudy, bawdy finish. Prudish tasters may find this display downright indecent, but I suspect most will get off on it, even if they cover the bottle with a brown paper bag! Importers: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300 and Frederick Wildman, New York, NY; tel. (212) 355-0700