A day after picking out a B.A., the crew of the St. Urbans-Hof harvested the 2008 Leiwener Laurentiuslay Riesling Spatlese feinherb. This represents a mere 2,000 liters from a portion of the ungrafted 1951 vines that the estate acquired from von Kesselstatt, because, explains Weis, it was so good he preferred to bottle it solo and declassify the rest of this year’s Laurentiuslay harvest of the same day into his generic estate Riesling. Quince, tangerine zest, lemon, sage, and oregano in the nose usher in a palate that combines less-enhanced creaminess with vivacity, succulence, refreshment, and transparency to saline and stony mineral nuances. Nectarine, quince, and diverse citrus are accented by zesty bitterness and cooling yet pungent herbal notes. This impeccably-balanced, subtly sweet beauty should be well worth following for 15-20 years, though if you can manage to get hold of some do not miss out on its youthful charms, nor neglect to put it through its paces at table. Sankt Urbans-Hof, notes proprietor Nik Weis, experienced a good ten degrees Oechsle difference in 2008 between its ripest Saar fruit – bottled as Spatlese – and that of the Mosel, which reached Auslese level even without stringent selection of botrytis fruit. “We find this a terrific vintage,” remarks Weis – who compares its style with 1998 – “inasmuch as at long last we again have the clear differentiation between Kabinett as it should be, Spatlese, and ennobled Auslese.” Remarkably, there is only a single trocken bottling here this year (from Mehring) which I did not taste and which was destined for the Landhaus Sankt Urban restaurant of Weis’s sister and brother-in-law.Importer: H. B. Wine Merchants, New York, NY; tel. (917)-402-0456

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