Künstler, Hochheimer Hölle, Riesling Erstes Gewächs, 2007

torsten — Tue, 10 May 2011 05:59:14 +0000

Abroad Germany is mostly know for its delicious sweeter Riesling, but at home it is the top dry Rieslings that get most media attention. They are labelled as "Großes Gewächs" (great growth) or, in the Rheingau, as "Erstes Gewächs" (first growth), at least for the wineries that are members of the growers associations that created these classifications. Quality standards are relatively strict and include low yields, selective harvesting by hand and using only grapes from individual, certified top vineyards.

The price for these grand cru wines is constantly going up, so if you find one from a top producer such as Künstler for less than 20 Euro it is lucky times.

torsten Tuesday, 10/05/2011

Weingut Künstler, Hochheimer Hölle, Riesling Kabinett trocken 2008

torsten — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 15:23:51 +0000

Weingut Künstler, Hochheimer Hölle, Riesling Kabinett trocken 2008

I would like to recommend this wine to all Anglo-Saxon wine lovers who enjoy the uniqueness of German wine labelling and, especially, naming. You might know that trocken means 'dry' and that Kabinett indicates that this wine is to be ranked among the quality wines. However, this is just the boring part of the classification system. Much more interesting is the name of the wine - artist's hell. How do the serious Germans come to such an usual name?

torsten Monday, 17/08/2009