A Sleepy German Backwater Hits the World Stage, Plus Japan’s Petit Verdot Surprise: Weekly Tasting Report

The JamesSuckling.com tasting team rated 569 wines in the final week of 2024 to bring our grand total for the year to a record-breaking 42,377 (including 1,200 barrel tastings), outpacing the 41,063 wines we rated in 2023, with Senior Editor Stuart Pigott checking in with a slew of the top scorers for the week during his journey to the Traben-Trarbach region of Germany's Mosel Valley.

When Stuart and James started tasting the wines of this spectacularly beautiful region back in the 1980s, Traben-Trarbach was a sleepy backwater with historic buildings but few interesting wines. That changed dramatically during the 1990s, and today a handful of producers are among the leaders in the entire region.

The most famous of these is Clemens Busch in Punderich. With his wife, Rita, Busch was one of the first German producers to go organic (in 1984) and produce wines proving that this was not a path suited only for long-haired, left-wing freaks. That was the image of organic winemakers 40 years ago!

Stuart was stunned by the 2023 vintage at Clemens Busch, with the entire range offering excellent to sensational quality. “For us it was a good crop in quantity, even after removing all the rotten fruit, and the wines fermented well," Busch said, adding that he was “delighted with the result.” The presence of some 2022 wines in the tasting notes below was the result of very long fermentations, which meant that Stuart couldn’t taste them last year.

The most extraordinary wine Stuart tasted was the dry Clemens Busch Riesling Mosel Marienburg Raffes 2023, which is like an essence of Mosel riesling with totally astonishing concentration and precision. The Raffes comes from a single parcel of vineyard and there are less than a thousand bottles, so this will be hard to find. However, Busch is taking over another plot of vines in the Raffes section of the Marienburg site, so production will increase.

The equally dry Clemens Busch Riesling Mosel Marienburg Felsterrasse 2023, which has enormous aromatic density and complexity, is hot on its heels. It’s like a kaleidoscopic image of the steep-sided Mosel Valley! And a bunch of Clemens Busch wines are just a couple of points behind this pair of great masterpieces.

Martin Mullen is the most important of the pioneers actually in Traben-Trarbach, having made his first wines in 1991. Today these are cult wines, just like those of Clemens Busch. A crazy (and beautiful) label and a delightfully eccentric way of running a winery didn't prevent the Mullens from becoming a cult. In fact they may have actually helped.

Mullen made a slew of amazing BA and TBA dessert wines in 2023, but all of them are very limited production. Stuart feels that the dry Martin Müllen Riesling Mosel Trarbacher Hühnerberg Spätlese Trocken ** 2023 is an equally astonishing vision of riesling paradise, packed with peach and apricot aromas. It has gigantic concentration and a profound slatey minerality.

All but one of Mullen’s 2023s have excellent depth – even the dry wines with just 10 to 10.5 percent alcohol. The exception was the only wine that was cross-flow filtered. “Each year we do one experiment,” Mullen explained, “and this is one we will not repeat. I prefer the results our old-fashioned, low-tech path gives.” That includes the use of a labor-intensive old basket press and wild fermentation in old 1,000-liter oak barrels.

Look out below for the wines of Vollenweider and Weiser-Kunstler, two small wineries based in Traben-Trarbach that also achieved stunning results in 2023. The dry Vollenweider Riesling Mosel Felsenfest 2023 offers spectacular value for money. It is packed with spicy, leesy and salty character.

Further upstream in Leiwen, the Nik Weis winery had its best vintage of modern times with 2023. Stuart tasted the dry riesling GGs earlier this year, so the most excitement in this tasting came in the stunning range of nobly sweet wines. The star there was the Nik Weis Riesling Mosel Goldtröpfchen Auslese Gold Cap 2023, with its enveloping aromas of floral honey, mushrooms, dried apricot and mango. Stuart loved its almost supernatural vibrancy.

Thanks to climate change and a pioneering spirit, self-taught winemaker Daniel Twardowski in Neumagen-Dhron has turned Mosel pinot noir upside down during the last decade. Also working as a dealer for high-end Burgundy wines gave him a deep knowledge of what this grape is capable of and the pitfalls involved in working with this diva.

The Daniel Twardowski Spätburgunder Mosel Pinot Noix Hofberg Réserve 2022 (yes, that X in the wine’s name is correct) is not only his best yet, but also clearly the best Mosel red wine Stuart has ever tasted. It has amazing tension and purity, plus a salty freshness that’s off the scale. The whole vintage turned out extremely well for him!

JAPAN'S PETIT VERDOT SURPRISE

In our Hong Kong tasting office, the pinnacle of our tasting was a unique Japanese petit verdot. All we have to say is that don’t underestimate Japan’s commitment to making fine reds, even though the country is still better known for its neutral and elegant white wines, many of which are made from koshu, a lightly scented local grape of big, pink berries.

Koshu has gained somewhat of an international reputation because of its non-invasive nature, which goes so well with many light seafoods as well as sashimi and sushi. Yamanashi prefecture, Japan’s first and largest wine region, where vines were first introduced in 1874, is known for its crisp, light koshu wines with naturally low alcohol, but the two petit verdots from this region that senior editor Zekun Shuai tasted show a different aspect, possibly indicating a promising future for the deeply colored, late-ripening and challenging variety.

The first, the Suntory Petit Verdot Yamanashi Tomi No Oka 登美の丘 プティ·ヴェルド 2020, is the more impressive. It is a classy, very serious petit verdot that is all about depth, freshness and a mineral quality. It needs time to open up in the glass before it evolves into an eloquent, abundant and complex wine, with a mid- to full-weighted palate that’s al-dente, vertical and close-knit. Add to that bone-dry elegance, minerality and purity from the blue and black fruit. The second, the 2021 vintage of the same wine, although not as highly rated, is still fresh and polished, with silty tannins that dissipate into a linear and tight-knit finish. 

THE ITALIAN UNDERDOG

Rosso di Montalcino is often cast as a supporting character and perennial underdog in Montalcino’s grand narrative. But is that still true today? Based on the nearly 100 wines Senior Editor Aldo Fiordelli tasted over the past week, there are a few compelling reasons that this appellation deserves to be known as more than just the little brother of Brunello.

The new releases are primarily from the 2022 and 2023 vintages, with a few lagging 2021s and a smattering of 2018 samples that feel out of place as the market prepares for the arrival of Brunello 2020.

The first impressions for both 2022 and 2023 are promising. The 2023 vintage, marked by widespread downy mildew, reveals itself as bright and sunny in character – light, low in extraction and intensely aromatic. The 2022, which saw healthier yet drier conditions in the vineyard, occasionally shows firmer tannins and ripe fruit notes, although it also boasts several standout wines.

Rosso di Montalcino warrants closer attention for the inherent, natural qualities of its wines. These are pure sangiovese, grown on Montalcino’s mineral-rich hillside soils in a Mediterranean climate that ensures optimal ripening. Unlike younger versions of other Tuscan sangioveses, Rosso di Montalcino sangiovese avoids the harshness often associated with the grape.

The production style of the region also favors freshness. Many Rossos see only stainless steel or spend a modest 12 months in large casks, emerging at their aromatic peak rather than requiring the long aging demanded by Brunellos. This approach is a blessing, particularly in warmer vintages. Crucially, there has been a shift in winemaking philosophy: Rossos are increasingly crafted as standalone wines, not as a byproduct of Brunello production. The era of “Baby Brunellos” is fading.

Rosso di Montalcino wines can also be great bargains, with some of the best quality-to-price ratios in Tuscany. In addition, some labels, like Poggio di Sotto, have achieved cult status among young Italian wine lovers.

But the main reason to love Rosso di Montalcino wines is that they serve as a preview of Brunello vintages to come. Like Bordeaux’s second vins (second labels) they offer a tantalizing glimpse into the character of a year. For 2023, the standout Rossos include the Uccelliera Rosso di Montalcino 2023, with its citrusy, fleshy character; the Altesino 2023, with its light extraction and open aromatics balanced by a lively finish; and the San Filippo Rosso di Montalcino Lo Scorno 2023, which has a super-refined palate.

Among the 2022s, the Biondi-Santi Rosso di Montalcino 2022 showcases restrained elegance, minerality and fruit-infused tannins; the Fanti 2022 has a floral touch with silky vibrancy; and the Fattoi 2022 comes with a delightful crispness and distinctive licorice notes.

Rossos may have once played second fiddle, but they are increasingly striking their own confident notes.

ELEGANT OREGON CHARDS

Associate Editor Ryan Montgomery tasted the current releases of Domaine Serene, the Willamette Valley, Oregon, winery that has gained notoriety for crafting elegant, mineral-driven chardonnays that highlight the region’s cool-climate character.

Their restrained and linear Domaine Serene Chardonnay Dundee Hills Recolte Grand Cru 2021 shows very pure and refined aromas of lemon peel, toasted nuts, sliced apples, pastry, and oyster shells. The palate is medium-bodied with focused acidity, resulting in a persistent and driven finish that carries an underlying tension. Made for earlier release and drinking is the Domaine Serene Chardonnay Dundee Hill Cote du Sud Vineyard 2022, which has a pure and refined aromatic profile that is tightly wound with underlying power on the palate.

– Stuart Pigott, Zekun Shuai, Aldo Fiordelli and Ryan Montgomery contributed reporting.

The list of wines below is comprised of bottles tasted and rated during the past week by James Suckling and the other tasters at JamesSuckling.com. They include many latest releases not yet available on the market, but which will be available soon. Some will be included in upcoming tasting reports.

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