Trocken/Not Trocken

The house's coat of honor

I don't often get a chance to do this: taste wines from the producer, same vineyard, same pardikat, same vintage, same grape: one dry, one classically off-dry. And on almost consecutive days, making for a relatively easy comparison.

Muller-Catoir, Pfalz, Haardter Burgergarten, Riesling Spatlese, 2007

The nose is showing good signs of development, with kerosene and smoky minerals over apple pie and a hint of tropical fruit. The palate is tasty and languid, and there is good acidity in there, yet somehow the overall effect isn't one that speaks to me of long term cellaring potential -just not racy enough. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, as I enjoy it a lot now, both for a certain clarity and for how it tastes. 9% ABV. (June 23, 2012)

Muller-Catoir, Pfalz, Haardter Burgergarten, Riesling Spatlese, Trocken, 2007

This sure ain't languid and it sure ain't too tropical. It's even more mineral-laden and saline. I'm guessing it could age better than its sibling, and it has have better poise and focus even now. In short, the better wine.   And it has that special quality of a great wine, that of discoursing its vineyard of origin: it lays out a map for you, and the map doesn't have recognizable names, it doesn't even have a compass to show you where the north is, but it gives you a handy picture of the layout of the land. 13.5 ABV. (June 24, 2012)

Both from Giaconda, 160 NIS.