The River

Our friends the Bassinet Babes have shifted house.  They’ve moved to a street named after a river, and it was appropriate to celebrate with a wine that came from the region of that river.  We weren’t quite expecting this, as SWMBO and I had turned up with a nicely chilled bottle of bubbles, but the wine the Babes had ready and served to us was perfect.

The 2001 von Schubert Maximin Grunhaus Abtsberg Riesling Auslese is now fully developed.  Golden yellow colour, the aromas were that heady mix of savoury lime fruit with honey, beeswax, crème custard, toast and minerals, plus some kero, if you’re that way inclined.  The palate was the same, with all those complex flavours layered and interwoven.  The textures were soft and fine, and the beginnings of dryness appearing.  And the acidity just showing a sweet and sour note now.  This was just past its plateau, but still drinking extremely well.  It let you know it was the treat.

At 15 years old, it could or should have been more, especially a top a top wine from the Ruwer.   Its delicacy in great years can see it develop for decades.  2001 is indeed a great year, and the Abtsberg could be expected to go on for ages, more so than the Herrenberg or Bruderberg.  But not this bottle.  Maybe its travels across the world may have put it on a slightly earlier path of aging.  I niggle here, because the wine was still glorious.  The Mosel river flows with gold and joy, as we experienced on this day.