Mittelhaardt Rieslingschorle

All things considered, the compact yet picturesque garden at Weingut Reichsrat von Buhl counts among the posher places you could think of to drink a nice cold Rieslingschorle on a sunny, warm early afternoon in June, but this is what my wife and I did a couple of years ago. Not all Rieslingsschorles are born equal, as ample experience has told me over the years. The specimen served to us that day from a humble litre bottle at von Buhl definitely counts among the creme de la creme. What I remember was a luscious ripeness that totally confounded me - all the more so given that the vintage was the oft-maligned 2010. It was merely a spritzer, but it was still a reminder for me that the Mittelhaardt really is a blessed area when it comes to Riesling.

The following wine continues in the same vein.

Weingut Heinrich Spindler, Forster Ungeheuer Riesling Kabinett trocken 2011, Pfalz, Germany
On the nose, you could say that the usual citrus comes to the fore. That may be true, yet the notes are of a lively lemony intensity. More lemon cake than lime soda. Over 48 hours, this initial excitement subsides, but the wine continues to shine on the palate. Peaches and over-ripe lemon. This Riesling is moderate in body and alcohol, although I suspect a mere nudge upwards in terms of the ripeness of the grapes would have seen it reach Spätlese trocken levels pretty quickly. In its designated category, this wine is representative of the type of Riesling I would associate with the Mittelhaardt: generous fruit, elegant, revitalising acidity, with some earthy complexity.

Good for a Rieslingschorle, though that would probably be a waste.