Really Late Harvest' Kestrel Riesling

Product description

If the standard Late Harvest already demands patience, then the Really Late Harvest demands even more. Whilst other grapes had long since been celebrating in the cellar, these bunches remained hanging on the Maringer Sundial until mid-November. Until the frost set in, until noble rot had done its work on no less than 25 per cent of the grapes, and until the concentration reached a level one would hardly expect from a dry wine. For the RLH, too, is made radically dry. All the ripeness, all the depth and all the golden power of noble rot are transformed into flavour and complexity, never into sugar.

The grapes are selectively hand-picked at freezing temperatures. The wine ferments spontaneously and then matures for a full year on the lees in a traditional 1,000-litre Fuder cask. That long, peaceful ageing gives it an almost oily texture and a virtually endless finish. Unfiltered, 100% vegan and with minimal sulphur. In the glass, the RLH is a deep golden yellow, glossy and inviting. The aroma is magnificent: dried apricots, honey, candied citrus peel and a deep, smoky slate minerality that ties everything together. On the palate, it is full-bodied, complex and endlessly long, with a new layer unfolding with every sip.

This is a wine that can be left to breathe in the glass for hours and reveals something new with every moment. It is the perfect accompaniment to pan-fried duck liver or vegetarian foie gras, lobster with saffron risotto or an extra-matured Mimolette. Serve at 12–14°C and take all the time it deserves.