Philipp Kuhn, Riesling Tradition, 2008

If you have ever come across the German village of Laumersheim, chances are it was because of a wine. Laumersheim is home to the Kinpser winery, a family owned estate that makes some of the best red wines you can get in Germany (and marvellous white wines too). And it is home to the Kuhn winery that is getting more and more attention, especially after Philipp Kuhn in 1992 - at the tender age of 20 - got involved in the family owned estate. You may be surprised to hear that the winery is not only producing some red wine, in fact about 50% of the wines made there are red. The delivery that brought this Riesling to London also included a Merlot! The story of red wine made by the Kuhns in the Palatinate will have to be told another night as tonight we are drinking the entry level Riesling from the Kuhn winery (entry level, by the way, does not mean mass-produced: harvests are limited to below 75 hl per hectare).

Immediately after unscrewing the bottle the yummy aromas of yeast fill the room. I poured a little wine and found not only a greenish golden colour, but also lots of small bubbles - certainly a very fresh wine, even into the second day of drinking it. The aroma is cool, with some citrus and peach, but also vegetable notes and a little spicy red apple. On the first day, I also found a little paraffin and bees wax with banana, but that was not as noticeable on the second day.

On the mouth it has focussed acidity and some fruit, but I also get a little smoke (again, this was more on the first day when the wine really made me crave for smoked bacon, citrus bacon, actually). Even on the second day the Riesling stayed fresh and sharp, a really clear-cut wine. The finish is on the medium side.

The 'Tradition' Riesling may not blow your socks off (to use that overused phrase). However, in the best sense this is a plain and honest wine, without being shallow. A nice, refreshing dry Riesling, especially if you like wine with good acidity.