2014 Meulenhof Erdener Treppchen Riesling Spätlese

100% sustainable Riesling from the slate soils of the 25 year old vines at the Treppchen vineyard.  Hand harvested, fermented with native yeasts in steel and aged on the lees in steel for five months. 8.5% alcohol. 66.8 g/L residual sugar. 

What an incredible value on a decade old bottling of some incredible Riesling! 

This Kabinett is a classic off-dry bottling that showcases the great minerality of the Mosel while also highlighting the intensity of Riesling with its bright acid that balances this wine so well. Aromas and flavors of white and yellow peach, gasoline, honey, lemon curd and ginger.  Low alcohol but medium bodied and quite viscous, with still fresh acidity and tons of complexity. 

Meulenhof’s earliest record of existence dates from 1337 when it was pledged by Countess Loretta and Count Johann von Sponheim to Knight Konrad of Lösenich. as part of the Cistercian monastery of Machern it was managed as a fruit and farm and mill. In the year 1802 it became part of secularization by Napoleon, like many ecclesiastical estates into bourgeois hands. In 1804, Johann Joseph and Bernard Joseph Schmitges acquired the Meulenhof. The Meulenhof was taken over in 1950 by their son Heinz Justen and since 1990 his son Stefan manages the Meulenhof. Many generations of Meulenhof’s “winemakers“ have dedicated themselves to produce a high quality product - and since 1900, Meulenhof is a member of the Bernkasteler Ring, a well known wine auctioneer. On the steep-sloped vineyards, Stefan and Helma Justen produce very rich, yet highly elegant, harmonic wines. Supporting residual sugar is contrasted by a fruity or full-bodied taste. Stefan Justen was born in 1959. He joined the company in 1974. He learnt viticulture and cellar management there. He later qualified as a technician for viticulture and cellar management. In 1982 he took over the vinification of the wines and in 1990, together with his wife Helma, he took over the management of the Meulenhof winery. Their two daughters Barbara and Julia support the winery.