A persistent aura of white raisin and honey – allied to quince preserves, glazed pineapple, and pear nectar – points to the botrytis component that (just as in 2008) Diels incorporated into their 2009 Dorsheimer Goldloch Riesling Spatlese. Yet for all of this wine’s richness and creaminess of texture, it is almost weightlessly delicate and refreshingly juicy. An inner-mouth floral profusion suggestive of iris and lily-of-the-valley wells-up and billows seductively through this beauty’s long finish. Here, too – though not as strikingly as in the corresponding Pittermannchen – there is a salinity that encourages salivation and the desire for the next sip. Look for at least two decades of delight. Caroline Diel’s 2009 collection is noteworthy not only for a range of outstanding Riesling such as has long been anticipated (though seldom bettered) at this estate, but also for a set of wines from the Pinot family – all, incidentally, now labeled with French rather than German names for their varieties – that in my estimation mark a significant up-tick in quality. That this estate has been famous in Germany for its work with Pinots ever since Armin Diel assumed charge in 1987 and began barrique vinification, I am of course well aware. But only in recent years have I witnessed tendencies to restrain the influence of new wood and to encourage real subtlety, which seem to me prerequisites for achieving with these varieties anything remotely approaching the class of Schlossgut Diel’s Rieslings. The 2009 Pinots were harvested in mid-October and most of the Rieslings in the two weeks following. The superb botrytis selections were all picked-out ahead of even the Pinots. Importer: Terry Theise Estate Selections, imported by Michael Skurnik Wines, Inc., Syosset, NY; tel. (516) 677-9300