Battenfeld-Spanier Gruner Sylvaner Qba Trocken, Rheinhessen, Germany

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Winter pear, water chestnut, and diverse green herbs scent and with crunch and pungency inform the palate of Battenfeld-Spanier’s 2010 Gruner Sylvaner trocken, an alkaline mineral sense hanging over the wine’s entire, generously juicy performance. As in past instances, this displays lift, polish, transparency, and refreshment such as one seldom derives from Silvaner (or from Sylvaner - yes, this estate spells the cepage name as the French do, with “y”), virtues that seem only to have been accentuated by 2010 vintage character that can render Sylvaner quite Riesling-like. The finish here clings with a lovely, persistent colloquy of fruit, herb, and mineral. Enjoy this inevitably versatile wine over the next 3-5 years, and quite possibly beyond. This year’s Battenfeld-Spanier collection – which, in Oliver Spanier’s unavoidable absence, I tasted with his father-in-law Roland Gillot – proved on the whole far more generous in vinous personality than that of nuptial partner-estate Kuhling-Gillot. And while the higher-alcohol and more aggressive phenolics in this estate’s Grosses Gewachs bottlings had in the past led me to sometimes prefer their lighter, more elegant and refreshing, if ostensibly lesser, “village” cuvees, in 2010 the crus were neither alcoholically-freighted nor – with one exception – overly astringent. (Incidentally, I missed tasting this year’s generic Battenfeld-Spanier Riesling.)Imported by Domaine Select Wine Estates, New York, NY; tel. (212) 279-0799

Spanier has once again done credit to a sadly under-appreciated grape with his 2009 Gruner Sylvaner trocken (yes, spelled on his label with a 'y,' which was long illegal). A deep green-gold color somehow portends the concentration of mint and hazelnut, as well as fresh kiwi fruit and apple flavors that convene on an ample yet refreshing, metaphorically cooling palate. Other than in its satisfyingly glycerin-rich texture, I would not guess this wine's 13% alcohol; in fact, it is gratifyingly fleet-of-foot for its variety. Spanier says it was ornery and unruly early-on - an experience he attests to having had before with this grape - however it's anything but that way now. Piquant nut oils and hints of crushed stone add to the complexity of an impressively persistent finish. I would expect this to offer myriad opportunities at table over the next 3-4 years if not beyond. (Unfortunately, I missed out this year on tasting a Pinot Blanc from Battenfeld-Spanier.) Oliver Spanier - for information about whose distinctive sites and methods consult especially my report in issue 185 - harvested until November 3, 2009, allowing almost an entire month for optimizing ripeness. Just as at their Kuhling-Gillot estate, the team of Spanier and his wife Carolin Gillot seek to avoid bottling non-trocken wines, instead blending away any lots that finish with more than 9 grams of residual sugar. Spanier is among the many German Riesling growers who - in his words - are "working in the direction of clarity, freshness, finesse and elegance of expression rather than extract or power" (for which he used the English word). But it's one thing to talk the talk and another to walk the walk - assuming that one is attracted by these stated goals - and in that respect, Spanier is not the only ambitious German grower I have encountered whose ostensibly lesser bottlings (from 2009, anyway) strike me as living up to his stated ideals better than do his Grosse Gewachse.Imported by Domaine Select Wine Estates, New York, NY; tel. (212) 279-0799

It’s name – surprisingly – spelled with a “y” (once illegal), Battenfeld-Spanier’s 2008 Gruner Sylvaner trocken smells of herbs and buddleia; acts surprisingly low-acid for its vintage, with an oily richness and plushness of texture; and pits apple pip and pungent herbs against almond cream and autumn pear in a finish that barely hints at unexpected sweetness. This memorably distinctive expression of a too-seldom appreciated variety should prove very useful over at least the next 2-3 years. Oliver Spanier – for a bit about whose distinctive sites and methods see issue 185 – harvested his 2008 vintage Rieslings from mid-October through the first week of November, and reports having performed no de-acidification.Importer: Domaine Select Wine Estates, New York, NY; tel. (212) 279-0799