Rock solid

Daniel Vollenweider originally hails from the Swiss canton of Graubünden. His is an unconventional story. This was recently the first Vollenweider wine I've ever tasted:

Weingut Vollenweider, Felsenfest Riesling 2012, Mosel, Germany
No trocken on the label, but this is certainly dry. It's Daniel V's basic dry estate wine. "Felsenfest" literally means "rock solid", but the "-fest" bit in the name also has festive connotations, surprise surprise.

At first, this wine showed slate, slate and more slate – but not much else. In fact, it felt quite thin, bony and austere on the palate. However, I should have known that this would improve 24 hours later. On the second day, it also showed mint and lemon on the nose, while the palate suddenly felt decidedly more mellow – and fruitier: citrus and some tropical notes, mainly – with some lacquer/varnish hints, the latter characteristic being very pleasant and not as bad as it might sound. Refreshing and sustained on the finish. Rock solid indeed.