Riesling "vom blauen Schiefer" 2024

A Riesling that puts its terroir ahead of its fruit. The underlying tone is dark and stony, cool slate, topped by a bright, floral note. The fruit only flashes through in places: pear, yellow plum, grapefruit, mandarin, yellow and green apple, plus zest of bergamot and kaffir lime. Add to that freshly cut almonds and almond blossom, clean herbs like parsley, chervil, lemon thyme and lemon balm, and a taut impulse of white pepper.

The grapes grow in the Fahrlay, directly opposite the winery at the ferry landing. That's where the only part of the vineyard with a blue slate formation is located. The soil is hard, forcing the vines to work hard to root deeply. Clemens Busch farms 20 hectares of steep sites in Pünderich and stopped using herbicides in 1976; the estate has worked biodynamically since 1986.

Pure Riesling at 12.0 % vol., made in a dry style. In the cellar, 80 percent of the wines ferment spontaneously in centuries-old 1,000-litre oak casks, without cultured yeasts, without enzymes, without fining; the long ageing on fine lees adds further complexity. 6.2 g/l residual sugar is balanced against 7.2 g/l acidity.

A broad entry, tightly knit, powerful, grippy and crisp. The bitter notes are precisely placed and give structure without adding weight. Aromatically the wine keeps turning: bright, then dark, yellow, then green, an interplay of slate, fruit, herbs and cool tension. The acidity in the 2024 vintage is finely integrated, making the wine approachable while remaining demanding. On the retronasal palate, smoke and stone merge with yellow and green fruit, the finish is lively and slightly astringent.

A second wine from the Fahrlay GG. The capsule colour reveals the soil: red, grey and blue represent the estate's three slate types, with the blue slate lending mineral freshness.