Picked the last week in October and at 13.5% alcohol, Neumayer’s 2010 Gruner Veltliner Der Wein Vom Stein – uniting fruit from Berg and Rothenbart – features honeydew melon, passion fruit, grapefruit, and green bean. There is a sweet sense of ripeness and at the same time a slightly detachedly vegetal aspect. Bitterness of grapefruit rind and what seems a veritable mouthful of chalk lend a certain austerity to the lingering but relatively austere finish of this palpably dense bottling, one apt to be best drunk within 3-4 years. (And that having been speculated, let’s see whether perhaps this might gain some clarity and harmony in bottle.) Ludwig Neumayer de-acidified at the lower end of his portfolio, especially in Riesling, but the results retain plenty of pep and incisive refreshment. Given the high extract that resulted from lots of rain, he notes, there was lots of buffering for the acids, and the thick skins and paucity of juice also had an ameliorative effect on acidity, effectively enhancing skin contact even in those grapes that were almost immediately pressed. “In fact,” notes Neumayer, “the material was so dense that you could only press very slowly.” Although his top Rieslings fermented through February, like the rest of this collection they were bottled already in April.Importer: Winemonger, Los Angeles, CA www.winemonger.com