I’ve made similar jokes myself, but as Maurice Barthelme pointed out, his bone dry, two-grams-per-liter 2007 Riesling Schlossberg might just as well have negative two grams of residual sugar as far as you can taste. Sage, cassis, lime, and lemon verbena on the nose are a bit Sauvignon-like, an impression dispelled neither by the pungently, smoky mineral streak nor by notes of toasted sunflower seed on the palate. This combines palpable density with lift and refreshment, finishing long, emphatically, and unabashedly-austerely on citrus zest, iodine, sea salt, crushed stone, and herbs. “It sweats terroir, doesn’t it?” remarks Barthelme, and who am I to try topping much less contradicting a line that good?! Expect this to evolve fascinatingly – and in an increasingly user-friendly fashion – over the next 15 or more years. I last enjoyed a bottle of the 1988 – equally bone dry, which back then was the Alsace norm – two years ago. To say that Maurice and Jacky Barthelme are bullish on their 2007s would be an understatement, as they seem to think that this is their best collection going all the way back to the wonderful 1988s with which they debuted in the U.S. (and a number of which I am still enjoying). Since they have been among those Alsace vintners most concerned with restraining sugar accretion while promoting ripe flavors, it’s understandable that they view 2007 as having been especially welcome when compared with other very recent vintages. “In September there was just enough rain; in October no rain; November was wonderful,” comments Jacky Barthelme, “so, we had time to harvest and to select.” Barthelmes were also among those growers who sold off a portion of their 2006 crop in bulk and declassified portions into generic bottlings, but the resulting bottlings are among the finest of that vintage, for which the brothers in part – unsurprisingly – credit biodynamic preparations and fruit that could be picked ripe early. My laudatory reviews of the (for this estate typically) outstanding value Mann Auxerrois Vieilles Vignes and Pinot Blanc bottlings of vintage 2007 can be found in issue 178. Importer: Weygandt-Metzler, Unionville, PA; tel. (610) 486-0800

A subtle white, with well-defined acidity and flavors of lemon zest and sea salt, as well as underlying notes of apple, honey and mineral. This shows intensity and a firm structure, and should open up with time. Best from 2011 through 2021. 800 cases made.??–AN??Region: France / Alsace / Alsace Grand Cru Select to Add

(residual sugar: 2g/l) Lovely, lean, mineral style, crisp, pure and long. Angular with very good fruit and lovely length. Needs some keeping.