The Greatest Vintage of My Lifetime

[Blanquito]

The thread on 2001 Bordeaux got me thinking...

The place where we should be talking about the 2001 vintage is... Germany.

Not even the 2001 Sauternes can compete with the 2001 Germany Rieslings. Truly a once-in-a-life-time vintage. One needs to go back to 1976 or 1971 to find German Riesling of this quality. So, that's three vintages in 40 years+. I've spent the 2002-2008 German vintages looking for something, anything that resembles the 2001s, and I have been disappointed nearly across the board.

Why do I love 2001 German Rieslings?, let me count the ways: the zingy, mouth-puckering, granny smith acidity... the awesome levels of wet stone and minerality... the epic length... the dazzingly aromatics... the steely balance to the sweetness inherent in these wines... the drinkability since release with over 20 years of cellaring to go... the power married to elegance... the oak-free elevage...

And the crazy part is, if you scrounge and obsess, you can still pick these 2001 Germans up at release prices.

Yes, there is some competition for these Rieslings: the 2000 Bordeaux vintage, the 2001 Sauternes, maybe the 1998 Chateauneufs, the 1999 Northern Rhones, the 2004 Barolos... but for rarity alone, the 2001 Germans have no peer.

Of course, you have to like white wines and you have to like Riesling.

What say you?

[Houndsong]

Checking my records, I don't think I've ever had one, nor do I have any. I like your enthusiasm though.

[RDD]

I say your on the wrong board.
This is the Bordeaux lovers board.

[JimHow]

Germany is okay, not in the same universe as Bordeaux....

[DavidG]

I might quibble with "greatest vintage of my lifetime" - a few Bdx vintages surpass it, but I'll back you up to some degree Patrick. And when Chris B sees this, he'll back you up too. I don't know that a paucity of great vintages is a good reason for '01 being great unless you have a serious German fixation. The vintage stands just fine on its own, though.

I don't drink a lot of German wines, but I bought 4 cases of '01 Germans, which for me is huge. Every one has been a delight, for all the reasons you mention, and I'm happy to have about half of it left.

[Houndsong]

Aside liking the riesling grape, and correct me if I'm wrong, you can get a "great" riesling, or something approaching it, for a whole lot less than an equivalently esteemed Bdx (or Burg for that matter).

[DavidG]

Absolutely, Hound. The most expensive '01 I bought was $75. Most were between $15-45. It does get pricey if you start talking about TBAs, which can run a few hundred/half bottle.

[Claret]

Riesling is my favorite white grape and to me Germany offers the epitome of the varietal. 2001 is a stunning vintage of which I have about 4 mixed cases, and damn I wish that I had more. I have not opened any bottles from this vintage in at least 5 years as they continue their slumber.

I like 2004 a lot, perhaps better than any vintage since 2001. This vintage is underpriced in the current market. It offers crystal clear acidic cut that gets my mouth watering. JJ Prum WS Kabinette a couple of months ago was stunning and is currently my white wine of the year. I could have easily polished off the whole bottle if my girlfriend was not having dinner with me.

I have been doing some backfilling on vintages lately as there have been some great deals in spite of recent release price escalation. 2007 JJ Prum GH Auslese for $19.99 was a no brainer.

Glenn

[Tom In DC]

I can buy into Patrick's "of my lifetime" approach as I think it's coming from the perspective that this is like '47 or '59 Loire whites, '59, '71 or '76 German Rieslings, '58, '71, '78, or '89 Piemonte Nebbiolo, or '59, '61, '82, '89, or '90 Bordeaux -- no matter how long you live, you'll never get to the point where you think you bought too many. (One can, however, quite easily start wondering if you drank too many too soon...)

Like Glenn, I like the oh-four's from Germany and we're loading up on (relative) bargain 07's for intermediate consumption.

Ciao,
Tom

[Jay Winton]

I've never been bowled over by the Riesling grape despite the efforts of Pappa Doc, KevinO (MIA), DavidG and others. Of course, everyone here has heard me say (ad nauseum) "white wine is what you drink before you drink red wine". I find Chablis to be the white wine I turn to when I want something more than a decent SB. Well, maybe a nice Meursault..

[Blanquito]

Just found this quote from Pierre Rovani... Seems I am not alone:

"I cannot think of a region that has had as great a vintage as Germany did in 2001... can you? As far as I'm concerned, it's even better than '61 or '82 in Bordeaux..."

[Claudius]

Guys
Don't drink a lot of German Riesling - but the best Australian Riesling vintage I've ever had is 2009.

As for others, I'd say:

Bordeaux 1982 (OK have little 1961 experience and 05 is too young). 82 is to my palate better and/or more consistent than other famed vintages like 86, 89, 90, 96, 2000 etc.
Burgundy - have to say 2005 as the vintage is fantastic across the board. For whites though, there are better vintages such as 96 and 02.
Rhone - 1999 to my palate
Australian reds - 1996 pretty well across the board was brilliant.

[sdr]

I appreciate Patrick's enthusiasm and I too like German riesling and bought a number of the '01s based on the ecstatic reviews and the modest pricing. But while I still enjoy it, I can't say I love the stuff enough to get really excited about it. It fills a spot though and a lot depends on the match with food, which I still find difficult despite what the pundits say. It does get better with age, though and many '01s at the Kabinett and Spatlese level are just coming into their own now.

[Houndsong]

Mostly we drink them as summertime cocktail wines but I ask without sarcasm wouldn't the obvious match be German food? At least that would be an area to investigate. I can see it with the sweet cabbage and the spaetzle and the smoked pork chops, schnitzels, etc. I love to drink Vouvray with baked ham and I would think a nice Riesling would go well too. I think the sweeter wines would be good with many Chinese foods (although I still like Champagne with Chinese).

[DavidG]

I like them with spicy food - Thai, Chinese. Agree that Champagne is another natural for spicy foods.

[Chasse-Spleen]

To me, the best match with German food is German beer. I'm talking about the meat and potatoes type fare that you get in the local 'whatever you call it.' But really, the great thing about this thread is Patrick's headline. Very clever...
-Chris

[DavidG]

Agree - Riesling doesn't match that well with the heavy German stuff.

As to "Greatest Vintage of My Lifetime" - as in vintages I've actually had a chance to cellar and sample from the get-go - this is ever-changing as new vintages appear and older ones develop. The '07 CdP (isn't that the one that inspired the quoted line?) could eventually be in the running, for me anyway, even though others complain that it's too ripe. Have to see how they develop in a few years. I think it will be hard for any CdP vintage to trump the best from Bdx based on my personal preferences. Right now I would say '82 Bdx is best I've had, with '90 Bdx giving it a good run. Too soon to tell on '00 or '05 Bdx, but one of them could end up taking the prize.

[Chasse-Spleen]

As far as the 'greatest vintages of my lifetime' are concerned, I was really lucky in that right about the time that I started to get really interested in wine, the '99 Burgs hit the shelves, and then the '00 Bordeaux. The '02 and the '05 Burgs were a brilliant echo of that. But beyond those, there are no superlative vintages to go nuts over although I really enjoyed '01 Bordeaux and somewhat missed out on '02 through over-indulgence of the aforementioned and just plain inexperience.

[Tom In DC]

Interesting side-tracks/hijacking...

I don't think Patrick was talking about value, because that will always be the first great vintage of one's area of interest that any collector buys in one's lifetime, since barring a depression, only the future "off" vintages will ever cost less.

Based on the new context, I'm WAAAY happy that I started buying wine as the '82 Bordeaux were rolling out...

[Claret]

Finding true Kabinette wines with the proper weight and balance in the 21st century has been difficult due to higher ripeness levels from the warming trend. Much recent vintage wine labeled Kabinette is actually declassified Spatlese or even Auslese, which can offer good value when they are closer to Spatlese as I do enjoy that pradikat, but there are times that I want a real Kabinette.

2008 is purported to be a Kabinette vintage and ever since I saw the WS review of 2008 Bollig-Lehnert Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Kabinett I was on the hunt for this wine. K&L offered it the other day and I went for a 6 pack after enjoying the 1989 Spatlese version recently. For $16.99 I could not resist. Here is the link http://www.klwines.com/detail.asp?sku=1 ... ewArrivals.

I sold a bunch of collectible wines yesterday and made a tidy profit luckily before today's stock market turmoil, but I am now back on a self imposed buying moratorium until the fall when 2 must buy mailers arrive, or a "can't live without it" screaming closeout deal surfaces.

Glenn

[PappaDoc]

Agree that 2001 Germans are terrific. But even those Kabinets were actually Spatlese weight must weights. The 2008 Kabinets are the "Real Deal", the first "True" Kabinets since the 1998 Mosels and Nahes.

This said, I was put out because the 01 German vintage brought German wines to the fore. Previously I didn't have to keep more than a couple of cases as one could buy 71s, 75s, 76ers, 83s, 90s for about 1/4 the price. Once German wines took off, with the 01 vintage, folk started gobbling them up.

The 04s are crystal clear wines, the 05s loaded with Botrytis, 07s had a very long hang time, and the 08s had very little Botrytis so it's a vintage of Kabinet and Spatlese.

As stated, great buys available for recent vintages from some of the best producers. The 90 vintage is now ready for drinking at the Auslese level. 90 JJ Prum Weh Sonn Aus is gorgeous! I've had it four times over the past three years, now near its' peak. Not cheap $100 when you can find it, but as stated VERY CHEAP when compared to 90 Bordeaux, Burgundy and Rhones of this quality.

PD

[Comte Flaneur]

I have been thinking about this and when it comes to Bordeaux I bet the answer will be 2005 though I have little experience of it yet. But I would say my favourite Bordeaux vintage is 1989 based on last year's tasting. I have never had so many brilliant bordeaux wines in a single tasting.

Nineteen ninety toy minds has more opulence, but less acidity than the 1989s. But when it comes to other regions 1990 would be my candidate for greatest vintage the world has ever seen - it was hugely successful in burgundy, the rhones, in Champagne, in Piedmonte, in Tuscany, in South Australia.

[Blanquito]

An important point is, when did one start buying wines in earnest? I didn't really get going until 1999-2000 (and didn't really get going until 2003-2004), so I missed buying the 1989s and 1990s (let alone the 1982s and 1986s) in any systematic, release-price way.

[Comte Flaneur]

I was lucky getting started in the very early 90s when wine prices were on the floor, and really went mad between 1995 and 1999 but I only have a few 97s. My biggest regret is not buying more cases of 1982, 1986, 1989 and 1990.

[stefan]

>>
My biggest regret is not buying more cases of 1982, 1986, 1989 and 1990.
>>

Amen, Ian. Too many other pressures then for our $$$.

[Blanquito]

What makes you think that 2005 will become one of the greatest recent vintages (in Bordeaux), Ian?

I don't necessarily disagree, but I'm curious to your perspective.

[Comte Flaneur]

It is based on the view of my wine drinking buddy in England who's advice is to buy (2005s) indiscriminately. I tasted some a couple of years ago at Zachys and they seem to have everything: poise, structure, power and stuffing without being overblown or too hot. And they are recognisably Bordeaux wines, unlike many of the 2003s and some of the 2000s, and I suspect many of the 2009s. However I still balk at the asking prices, and I am more than happy to be bellied up to the bar with 95s, and 96s (96 left banks account for 12% of my collection by volume). At a 4 x 4 tasting of 1995-1998 first growth medocs in 2001 in dawned on me that Bordeaux does not get much better than these 96s. If the 05s turn out to be better than the 96 lefties, it will be by a hair's breadth. But I think you probably did well Patrick to load up on 05s.

Also, the 95s won't be far behind the 96s in my opinion because many of these are starting to come on strong after being shut down and awkward for a long time. At our Paris 76 revisited tasting last month the Mouton 95 was the best wine in my opinion. Today I saw 95 Lafite for $495 a bottle. Now that is an obscene amount to pay for a bottle of wine. But the Chinese have driven the price of this wine to nearly double that amount. Twist or stick?

[Chasse-Spleen]

At the risk of drawing fire for mentioning the unmentionable, I will interject something I've been resisting reporting, a comment from one of my friends who is a wine professional. He says that '96 Bordeaux is great for drinking now and in the near future but that it will be outlasted by '95. If longevitiy is one of your major factors in determining the ultimate value of a vintage, then that means... Also, it would seem that '96 doesn't make for much of a comparison with '05, which is supposed to last forever. Also, isn't '05 somewhat of a Right Bank vintage? I love '96, I swear! But I've never had an '05 that made me fall in love with it. Some were delicious, but superficial somehow.
-Chasse

[Comte Flaneur]

I remember Paul saying that the 96s won't last Chris and I know the French like to drink their Bordeaux on-the-young-side but properly stored top left banks have decades ahead of them in my opinion. Some are drinking well already, others have closed down. Time will be he judge but I think he is off base there.

I had Cos D'Estournel 1996 recently and that seemed to be shutting down again. It is clearly a wine for the long haul. The last 96 I drank - with Jono in London - was Palmer and we were speechless in admiration for it...it blew everything else off the table. Contrary to my expectations - I thought it would be excruciatingly backward - it was just about entering its plateau of maturity, but it will provide at least 30 years of enormous pleasure.

[Chasse-Spleen]

I'm not saying that '96s will go south anytime soon, not at all. It's just relative. It's true, Paul is a bit of a Right Bank guy, from my general observations.
-Chris

[DavidG]

How long a vintage lasts can be over-rated. How well the wines perform at peak is more important. And how broad the success: were just the top wines stunning or was there greatness across the board?

Ageability is important from the perspective that the wines need to last long enough to develop complexity, and then last some more so that they offer a broad drinking window. A recent vintage that will last 100 years offers no advantage over one that will last 50, unless you are buying for your children. At my age, wines that will be in their sweet spots in 5-10-15 years make more sense than those that will still be babies when I'm in my 70s.

[Blanquito]

The 1996 Lefts are pretty epic with sensational aromatics (although they're not ready yet on the palate by and large), though some 2000s may be more complete is my instinct.

2005 has really impressed me at the petit chateau level- as Parker said, it may be the best vintage since 1982 for the little wines, but I've been a little worried about overdone wines in 2005 especially on the right bank. I guess I'm with Chasse that no 2005 has really wowed me yet (unlike 2000 where some wines were killer from the word go), but it is of course still very early.

The vintage that I suspect will be surprising and lots of fun to taste over the next 10-15 years will be 2003 especially from the northern Medoc. I'm not really to call it the next 1947, but I'm starting to see some wines firm up and integrate in bottle that may become real head-turners. Even the train-wreak Lascombes 2003 has become "Bordeaux" in the last year. Like the 1990s, these 2003s could do really well in verticals and big tastings.

[Chasse-Spleen]

I liked the '03 Lascombes when I first tried it on release. It was like gasoline, but in a good way.
-Chasse

[DavidG]

1996s appear to be awesome on the left bank, though most of the good ones are still on the upslopes of their maturity curves.

I found the '03 Lascombes comments fascinating. '03 gets a lot of criticism for being over-ripe and hot. If a lot of '03s settle down and develop real Bdx character, it will be a very pleasant surprise.