As has become habitual with his residually sweet offering from this site, Donnhoff's 2009 Norheimer Dellchen Riesling Spatlese was sold at auction. (Its capsule, I'm told, is gold, but Donnhoff said "please don't describe it as 'gold capsule Spatlese,'" so I haven't.) Intense floral perfume and its liquefied, creamy essence are allied with pear, white peach and grapefruit; herbal essences; as well as salt, stone, and savory suggestions of things carnal. Hints of honey and caramel point toward the wine's botrytis element, but the overall effect here is strikingly cool, buoyant, and diaphanous in its shimmering interplay of diverse, ethereal, almost cloud-like flavor elements. Look for at least two decades of excitement. "In a great vintage with good weather this prolonged," remarks Helmut Donnhoff of 2009, only half in humor, "the only time limit to harvest is that set by the wild boar." And most of the excitement here this year - including the remarkable range of Spatlesen and the botrytis selections - was generated from a single week's picking in early November. "It's a year of the naked wine," adds Donnhoff, pointing to what he perceives as the stark portrayal of vineyard typicity that runs through his entire 2009 collection. His recent arrangement with the new Gut Hermannsberg (whose origins and inaugural vintage are canvassed elsewhere in this report) has taken Schlossbockelheimer Kupfergrube out of Helmut Donnhoff's line-up, while he has roughly doubled the surface area in the Hermannshohle under his control (to nearly 10 acres, or roughly half the Einzellage). The suggested retail prices I received from Donnhoff's importer represented significant price reductions vis-a-vis the last two years - and prices on the estate's private customer list have remained virtually unchanged for several years - adding yet another reason to seek them out. "I want to offer my customers good value," remarks Donnhoff with, in my view, considerable understatement, "and I'm proud of the fact that nobody in the trade who has bought from me has lost money reselling my wine." Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300

The 2007 Norheimer Dellchen Riesling Spatlese - which Donnhoff offered at auction - unites ripe apricot, pear, nectarine and quince with salinity and alkaline mineral elements on a palate of creamy, almost paste-like richness, and riveting intensity. The distinctive botrytis component here, though, is as subtle as it is unmistakably noble. The expression documentation of the vineyard to which Donnhoff alluded in explaining the character of this vintage seems to apply in another sense here, as one could write an essay attempting to capture this wine's finish. No doubt it will dazzle in 25 years as well. While Donnhoff returned to his usual humility in characterizing the latest vintage - following an atypically unabashed outbreak of enthusiasm in describing his indeed amazing collection of 2006s - it is clear that the 2007s delight him in a similar way, as outstanding representations of their respective sites at Spatlese ripeness. (Note, incidentally, that the Pradikat has been removed from any dry wines here, in keeping with a new convention of the Nahe branch of the VDP growers- association.) -Within that range of ripeness,- he submits, -one best-recognizes the site. Here you have nothing exaggerated, but instead a normal harvest, meaning a documentation of the vineyards, each a different face on the landscape. They all went to the same school and had the same opportunities- he adds, gesturing to the long row of Spatlesen on the tasting table, and alluding to his own role as well as the vintage-s. -It was a bit intimidating this year at harvest,- he added, -because when the grapes are perfect, you can only make mistakes.- I had the rare fortune to taste this collection twice, and like so many 2007s (a comment that even more growers made about their 2008s) the wines were much more impressive in September than in Spring. A 2007 Hermannshohle Trockenbeerenauslese, by the way, is still trying to become wine after two years. Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300

The 2007 Norheimer Dellchen Riesling Spatlese - which Donnhoff offered at auction - unites ripe apricot, pear, nectarine and quince with salinity and alkaline mineral elements on a palate of creamy, almost paste-like richness, and riveting intensity. The distinctive botrytis component here, though, is as subtle as it is unmistakably noble. The expression documentation of the vineyard to which Donnhoff alluded in explaining the character of this vintage seems to apply in another sense here, as one could write an essay attempting to capture this wine's finish. No doubt it will dazzle in 25 years as well.While Donnhoff returned to his usual humility in characterizing the latest vintage - following an atypically unabashed outbreak of enthusiasm in describing his indeed amazing collection of 2006s - it is clear that the 2007s delight him in a similar way, as outstanding representations of their respective sites at Spatlese ripeness. (Note, incidentally, that the Pradikat has been removed from any dry wines here, in keeping with a new convention of the Nahe branch of the VDP growers- association.) -Within that range of ripeness,- he submits, -one best-recognizes the site. Here you have nothing exaggerated, but instead a normal harvest, meaning a documentation of the vineyards, each a different face on the landscape. They all went to the same school and had the same opportunities- he adds, gesturing to the long row of Spatlesen on the tasting table, and alluding to his own role as well as the vintage-s. -It was a bit intimidating this year at harvest,- he added, -because when the grapes are perfect, you can only make mistakes.- I had the rare fortune to taste this collection twice, and like so many 2007s (a comment that even more growers made about their 2008s) the wines were much more impressive in September than in Spring. A 2007 Hermannshohle Trockenbeerenauslese, by the way, is still trying to become wine after two years.Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300