New this year to Messmer’s geological line-up of bottlings (and needing no translation), his 2008 Riesling Kabinett trocken Granit comes from a site near Weyher whose official name even Messmer couldn’t recall at the moment he showed me the wine. Iris, narcissus, and sea breeze in the nose lead to a palate of brightness, lift, and salinity, with tart lemon and gooseberry notes in the finish. This was one of several Messmer bottlings where I wondered whether their having been closed under screwcaps might be enhancing the tight, reductive, Sauvignon-like side of their personality and of the vintage. This brisk bottling should be employed over the next 3-4 years, but might well become more expressive in another 12-18 months. It had been too long since I’d seen Gregor Messmer (although I am at his winery annually) and I was encouraged by witnessing him professing his rededication to his vineyards. That said, after a 2007 collection that was the best I had tasted here in a number of years, I found that some of these 2008s – which were harvested between the 18th and 30th of October – leaned rather sharply in the direction of leanness and Sauvignon greenness and shared with many of their fellow Pfalz trocken Rieslings an extremely tart brightness.Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300