Hermann J. Wiemer 2008 Dry Riesling
By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief
Hermann J. Wiemer is what I call an "any vintage" winery.
What I mean is that, regardless of the conditions throughout the growing season, this is a winery that can be counted on for good wines. They truly do the best with what Mother Nature gives, even if she doesn't give much.
Making good wines even in lesser years is a testament to co-owner and winemaker Fred Merwarth's talents and attention to detail.
So what happens in good years, like 2008 for Finger Lakes rieslings?
Wines like this one happen.
This Hermann J. Wiemer 2008 Dry Riesling ($17.50) is Wiemer's 'regular' dry bottling, but it's anything but ordinary.
The nose erupts with classic Finger Lakes character — bright lime, Kaffir lime leaf, lemon zest and grapefruit aromas with an undercurrent of wet slate minerality.
In a mouth-watering, Kabinett style, the palate is dry (.8% RS) with electric acidity that is both balanced and integrated. Lime flavors drive the palate with white grapefruit and slightly less minerality than the nose might indicate. There is also a distinct flavor that reminds me of the candy shell on sugar-coated almonds.
This wine shows great length and has a bright-but-smooth finish, begging for another sip — as well as a place on the lunch or dinner table.
Producer: Hermann J. Wiemer
AVA: Finger Lakes
ABV: 12%
Price: $17.50*
Rating:
(4 out of 5 | Delicious, Distinctive
)
Curious to know people’s opinions for the aging potential of the better NY Rieslings like HJW’s here. I’d like to put a case away someplace dark quiet and cool before I graduate and would be curious to know how long I should be able to see positive differences before they start to fade away.
This is one of the wines I’d consider doing this with, good idea?
Brad - You could hardly find a better idea. The entire Wiemer ’08 Riesling lineup is ideal for aging. You’re going to see a beautiful arc with these wines from the 5-10 year range (if history and quality are any guide). But with proper storage, this is one of the few New York wineries where I’d be extremely confident that age won’t take too much away even two decades on. That’s obviously a guess, but at this point it’s pretty educated.
Still, if you want a case that will show optimally, drink one every year for a dozen years. Hard to beat that.
Brad: In my somewhat limited experience with older Finger Lakes rieslings, it’s the ones with perhaps a bit more residual sugar than this one that are best for aging.
That said, it really depends on how long we’re talking. If the idea is up to 10 years, I think you’d do well with this wine — definitely. Beyond that…I just don’t have the experience to know for sure.
Evan has tasted more older stuff, so perhaps he can offer some insight.
Annnnd…now I see that Evan and I commented at almost the exact same time.
That’s actually not surprising. Anyway, there you go.
sooooo agree Lenn, tasted the ’08 at the winery and it was rockin’, along with the rest of their lineup, including red. Cab Franc really surprised me.
Matt: Both the 07 and 07 Reserve are very good wines. I’ve enjoyed both and have several of the reserve in my cellar to hold for at least a few years.
I may be the only person in the world who’s never been impressed by Wiemer’s wines, but when we’re up there this weekend we’ll stop in and try this one. If it’s half as good as Lenn says, it’s a keeper.
Just out of curiosity, do Rieslings with a bit of residual sugar tend to be better at aging in general in your view Lenn? Or is that more of a specific guideline for the area?
Also, Merwarth is one of the coolest winemakers I’ve met. In the few years I’ve been familiar with the winery, I’ve never been disappointed and often have been pleasantly surprised with what comes out of there. They aren’t afraid to try something out of the ordinary (like late harvest Chard, haven’t seen another local one of those ever, and while not mind blowing, its very tasty and well done) which always makes it exciting and fun. Just my two cents.
We have 3 bottles of this ’08 that we got a few months ago. Might do the “drink one now, drink one in 2 years, drink the last in 5 years” thing. (Not for nothin’, but we also have 3 bottles of the ’08 Wiemer Gewurztraminer…would that wine last 5 years so we could do this too?)
Scott: I’d be curious to hear what you think of the current lineup. Keep us posted.
Brad: In my experience, and from what I’ve been told by many people I trust, a little RS can be very good when it comes to aging wines longer term. That said, I’ve had some delicious older dry rieslings as well.
Paul: I haven’t tasted the 08 Gewurzt yet, so I probably shouldn’t speculate!