Riesling Marienburg Auslese VDP Grosse Lage 2023

A nobly sweet Auslese from the Mosel that carries its concentration on just 7.5% ABV. Sweetness and acidity stand in tension with one another, while the slate's minerality sets the direction. A wine that comes across as clear-cut rather than merely charming.

The Pündericher Marienburg is Clemens Busch's core vineyard, with eleven of the estate's twenty hectares of steep sites located here. The mountain shows three colours of slate, red, grey and blue, each with its own character; the colour of the capsule reveals which soil is in the glass. The oldest, ungrafted vines root down as deep as eight metres into the rock. This is possible because the soil has been farmed without herbicides since 1976. The estate has worked biodynamically since 1986, today together with Rita and son Johannes Busch.

Riesling in nobly sweet Auslese quality. In the cellar, most of the wines ferment spontaneously in centuries-old 1000-litre oak casks, without cultured yeasts, without enzymes, without fining. Some fermentations take over a year. Extended ageing on the fine lees adds complexity, and sulphur additions remain minimal even for the nobly sweet wines.

Pale golden yellow with greenish highlights. The nose shows ripe mirabelle plum and apricot, along with citrus zest, honey blossom and the smoky spice of slate. The palate is dense and juicy, its delicate sweetness carried by precise acidity, with a long, mineral-driven finish.

With blue cheese such as Roquefort, with foie gras terrine and with fruity desserts such as apricot tart, apple strudel or quince paste. Also with spicy Asian cuisine, such as a Thai coconut curry.

Grand cru (Grosse Lage) under the VDP classification, 7.5% ABV. The estate's wines are listed on the wine lists of five three-star restaurants.