Brett happens

If the MWG’s August tasting had a theme, it was, in three of the flights, wines whose full appeal might not be immediately obvious and, within each flight, bottles at a range of price points. Also, many of the the bottles were from highly regarded producers. And since the people who’d signed up for the event weren’t allergic to whites, half of the wines were that colour. To go by the post-tasting comments, it was one of the most satisfying and enjoyable lineups in the group’s history.

First up, a flight of MSR Kabinetts. The wines, like all the others served, were double-decanted shortly before the tasting began.

Riesling Kabinett 2010, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Ürzig Würzgarten, Mönchhof ($24.80, 11034804)
8.5% ABV. White flowers, minerals, chalk, green apple. Somewhat sweet on the attack; dries out a bit as it goes along. Lemon-lime, pear, white grapefruit and clover intertwine with slatey minerals. Tingly acid and a faint carbon dioxide spritz provide lift.  Good balance and length. Clean as a whistle and enjoyable as all get-out if a little simple-seeming next to the Prüm and Müller. (Buy again? Sure.)

Riesling Kabinett 2008, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Wehlener Sonnenuhr, Joh. Jos. Prüm ($35.75, 11182284)
8% ABV. Strong sulphur slowly dissipates, leaving a soft bouquet of lemon and quartz that somehow smells dry. More serious and drier tasting than the Mönchhof: light but deeper and more layered, with lime, apple, rainwater and a kaleidoscopic array of minerals that lasts through the long finish. Ends on a briny note that one taster dubbed “sea mist.” Tightly wound and barely loosening in the hour or so it was open, but the potential is tangible. (Buy again? Yes, to lay down for at least five years.)

Riesling Kabinett 2010, Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Scharzhofberger, Egon Müller ($52.00, 11170435)
10% ABV. Complex and surprisingly open nose of lime blossom and minerals with hints of jalapeño and camomile. Beautifully balanced and integrated, intense yet ethereally light. The fruit is delicate, less citrusy and more white peachy than the others, the minerality crystalline. The sweetness seems natural, organic.  Remarkably pure and precise – nothing superfluous. While it’s easy to be beguiled by the surface, there’s also an underlying tension that augurs well for the future. An exquisite wine on a plane so rarefied you’re almost forced to use abstract descriptors. (Buy again? Price is the only possible barrier.)