Dr. Loosen Erdener Prälat Riesling GG Alte Reben 2016

Das Weingut Dr. Loosen verfügt über hervorragende Weingärten in den renommiertesten Gemeinden der Mittelmosel: Graach, Wehlen, Bernkastel, Erden und Ürzig. Zu 98% sind seine Weinberge mit wurzelechten Reben bepflanzt, deren durchschnittliches Alter 60 Jahre beträgt. Im Keller setzt Bernhard Schug die Vorgaben seines Chefs um: langsame Vergärung ohne Reinzuchthefen; keinerlei Schönung und vor allem so wenig Bewegung wie möglich.

Erdener Prälat

"VDP.GROSSE LAGE zeichnet die hochwertigsten deutschen Weinberge aus. Hier reifen die besten Weine mit komplexem Geschmack, expressivem Lagencharakter und besonderem Reifepotenzial. Die Lagen werden von den VDP Regionalverbänden mit großer Sorgfalt bestimmt und parzellengenau abgegrenzt."

Parker-Bewertung Jahrgang 2015:

2015 Dr Loosen • Erdener Prälat Riesling Alte Reben GG
230, The Wine Advocate, 28th Apr 2017
Rating: 96
Drink Date: 2017 - 2040

The 2015 Erdener Prälat Riesling Alte Reben GG is very clear and intense on the nose, where tropical fruit flavors intertwine with smoky red slate, herbal and lemon aromas. This Riesling is full-bodied, rich and lush, but fresh and highly finessed on the palate. This is a very complex and tightly woven, pure and salty, but nevertheless aromatic Riesling; it has concentrated yellow plum and stone fruit aromas. The finish is gorgeous for intellectual wine lovers, as well as for hedonists. The Prälat, though located straight under Loosen's old vines Treppchen plot and closer to the Mosel river, seems even purer and finer than the Treppchen GG, which is more lush and creamy, showing more tannins. This is an amazing Riesling and the finest dry Prälat I have probably ever tasted. It is ready to drink, but folks, don't be foolish! Keep it for years and drink it as many times as possible. Just one fuder produced, so less than 1,000 liters.

"After the very challenging vintages of 2013 and 2014, 2015 was balm for the winemaker’s soul!" Ernst Loosen is more than happy with the 2015 vintage, which hosted one of the warmest summers in the last 100 years and was finished with a harvest under "close to perfect conditions." 2015 allowed team Loosen to pick "grapes with optimal must weights and acidity levels." The vintage did not just bring "excellent yields," but also wines in all quality levels up to Trockenbeerenauslese, are all based on "perfectly healthy" grapes with an intense concentration of fruits and vivid acidity levels.

"We started a pre-harvest at the end of September when we sorted out any early botrytis. The main harvest began on the first of October. The weather had remained very dry until then, but by the end of September we were hit by some heavy rainfalls. This was a bit frightening, but fortunately the rain stopped at the beginning of October and the weather turned cooler, sunny and dry."

Berni Schug, long-time winemaker at Dr Loosen, was thrilled with the grapes he received. "Their excellent health and ripeness of up to 100° Oechsle and ten grams per liter of acidity was perfect to produce Kabinett and Spatlese wines, but also top dry Rieslings from our Grosse Lage (grand cru) vineyard sites," says Loosen. And topping it all off, his team brought in superb botrytis selections for Auslese, a good amount of Beerenauslese and even some Trockenbeerenauslese with up to 200° Oechsle. "The berries were perfectly dried and shriveled beautifully."

Highlights of the 2015 series include the dry GG wines (grands crus), as well as several predicate levels including Kabinett and Spätlese. The bottlings from the Erdener Prälat belong to the best that the Mosel has produced in 2015. Last but not least, you should try the GG Réserve Rieslings from 2013, which were bottled only after they had spent two years on the full lees.