Müller-Catoir, Haardter Scheurebe, Kabinett trocken, 2009

One of the venerable German wineries we have yet to introduce here on the Wine Rambler is Müller-Catoir. Established in the 18th century, the Pfalz estate has been in the same family for nine generations. There is also a generational theme about how I first came across Müller-Catoir - my dad is a big fan, and he always mentions MC when the topic of German Riesling comes up. On 20 hectares, the Catoirs are mostly growing Riesling and Pinot (Noir, Blanc and Gris), but also a range of other wines including the Germanic variety Scheurebe.

Scheurebe is famously aromatic and often made into sweeter wines, but in Germany the trend goes to dry - as with everything -, and so I was looking forward to sampling my first dry Scheurebe in a while.

Müller-Catoir bottles feature a distinctive Gothic design that I quite like. It does give the wine a serious appeal though - whereas the Scheurebe has something quite playful to it, at least on the nose.

It smells very floral, noticeable elderflower, but also lots of herbs, ranging from sage to menthol aromas. All this spiciness and blooming is more than balanced by fruit, citrussy lemon-peel, passion fruit and ripe mango - all presented in a refreshing, clear and sharp way with mineral coating.

On the tongue the Scheurebe is less sweet than you might expect from the nose, a dry wine with lots of fruit and a dry mineral and lime finish. The fruit is very enjoyable, but feels more like a fruit smoothie than distinct and easy to identify flavours of individual fruit. The Scheurebe has intense aromas and the first sensation on my tongue was similarly intense, mid-palate it fell a little flat (in comparison to the intensity of the rest of the MC experience that is), picking up again on the finish.

Perhaps a little better on being refreshing than complex on the tongue, the MC Scheurebe is a very enjoyable wine that, for some reason, reminded me a little of a blend of Muscat and Gewürztraminer. A wine for spring and summer.