Rigorous selection netted 50 liters of 2004 Bopparder Hamm Ohlenberg Riesling Trockenbeerenauslese, which smells of apricot jam, mint, black tea, grapefruit marmalade and honey. It offers dense, plushly-textured layers of jammy pit fruit, honey, marzipan, herbal concentrate, spiced citrus marmalade, and malt, all the while managing to stay aloft on the palate. The long finish ranges from deep low tones up to a piccolo-like whistle of lemon. Clearly this impressive wine has years to go, but will almost certainly gain additional clarity and harmony even in the short run. By the way, the inaugural Weingart Pinot Noir – although a bit oaky because he had to go out and buy a barrel! – displayed lovely bright fruit and impressive density. Florian Weingart brought no Riesling in from the Bopparder Hamm under 90 degrees oechsle – a record at this estate – but the range of phenolic ripeness was much more variable than that statistic would suggest. In years gone by, Adolf Weingart would have attempted to gently de-acidify a vintage with acids like this, but his son sticks by principle and with a single exception did not touch the 2004 acids. Instead, he tried to counter any tendency toward green, aggressive acidity with time on the lees and judicious application of residual sugar. But as he points out, it didn’t help that the 2004s as a rule stubbornly held on to their CO2 after a cold winter, a condition normally viewed as favorable. Introducing some wood into the cellar is an idea for the future.Importer: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300