Robert Weil Kiedricher Grafenberg Riesling Auslese, Rheingau, Germany
| Assmanhausen | Hochheim am Main | Mittelheim | Wicker |
| Erbach | Johannisberg | Oestrich | Winkel |
| Geisenheim | Kiedrich | Rauenthal | |
| Hallgarten | Lorch | Rudesheim | |
| Hattenheim | Martinsthal | Walluf |
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Kiedrich wine region
Kiedrich is an historic town in the north-east of the Rheingau region in Germany. It has been called a "gothic treasure box" due to its landmark Church of St Valentine (1493) and Town Hall (1585), where a festival celebrating wine and marriage is held every June. The town boasts a winemaking tradition established in 1131, and has the oldest winemakers' co-operative in the Rheingau (1893).
There are several single vineyard sites in Kiedrich as well as the broader Heiligenstock designation, but it the Erste Lage Gräfenberg vineyard and the acclaimed producer Robert Weil that draw the most attention. By the late 19th century Gräfenberg wines were touted across Europe as German Grand Crus.
Gräfenberg faces the south-west and in places has a gradient of up to 60%. The soils are rocky and well hydrated with prevailing winds that allow for an extended maturation time, resulting in elegant Riesling akin to that of the Mosel. Though Gräfenberg is one of the smaller vineyards in the Rheingau, its importance cannot be underestimated – as was seen in 1999 when a 1921 Dr Weil Kiedricher Berg Auslese commanded the highest price ever fetched at auction for a 20th century wine.
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Bereich Johannisberg wine region
Each of Germany's 13 wine-producing regions is divided into smaller districts known as Bereiche. Reference to these sub-regions has fallen from fashion in recent years, but they still exist as part of the landscape of German wine law.
Bereich Johannisberg is the only official sub-region of Rheingau and is contiguous with the entire Rheingau region. It stretches from the mouth of the Main river where it flows into the Rhine just south of Wiesbaden, following the Rhine first north, and then westward, until the river again swings north at Bingen and on to Lorch, where the Mittelrhein begins.
Originally established as a wine-growing region by the Romans, Rheingau is now almost entirely a Riesling area. The first documented plantings occurred in 1435 and this one variety now accounts for almost 80% of the total vineyard area. Spätburgunder (Pinot Noir) follows at approximately 12%, then Müller-Thurgau at around 2%.
Sixteen towns and villages within Bereich Johannisberg have vineyards that have been classified by the VDP as Erste Lage.
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| 1997 | 2005 |
| Hart Davis Hart Wine Co. |
$32.00
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| Woodland Hills Wine Co. |
$34.95
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| Hart Davis Hart Wine Co. |
$36.00
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| The Rare Wine Co. |
$39.95
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| JJ Buckley Fine Wines |
$39.99
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| Howard Ripley |
$40.29
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| Coe Vintners |
$45.57
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| Hart Davis Hart Wine Co. |
$46.15
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| Big Bottles |
$46.47
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| Wine House |
$49.98
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Riesling is an aromatic white grape variety of German origin which is, if the majority of the world's top wine critics are to be believed, the finest white wine variety on Earth.
For many, the claim may seem at odds with the sea of chaptalized, low-quality wine exported from Germany in the late 20th century. In fact, very little of that wine was Riesling at all, but the reputation has nonetheless stuck. No less unshakeable a stereotype is of Riesling as just a 'sweet' grape, used only to make sticky wines. Although based on a grain of truth (sweet Rieslings are among the finest in the world), this stereotype blindly ignores the fact that most Riesling is either dry or off-dry, and is behind some of the finest, most age-worthy cuvees that money can buy.
The Riesling vine holds a very different place in the wine world to such great grapes as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot or Chardonnay, and even Sauvignon Blanc, another aromatic variety which excels in cool climates. While these grapes make globally popular wines and have conquered every corner of the winegrowing world, Riesling has a more exclusive fan base, and is conspicuous by its absence in the core vineyards of France, Spain and Italy.
Riesling's home is unquestionably the regions which trace the middle Rhine and the lower Mosel, two of Europe's great wine rivers. This essentially equates to the key wine regions of Germany, most famously the Mosel, more ...