Peter Jakob Kühn, Riesling Unikat "R" dry 2013

96 / 100 Robert Parker
Kühn's 2013 Riesling "R" is from the "Doosberger Köpfchen" parcel that is part of the Doosberg "VDP Grosse Lage." It fermented and aged in a 1,200-liter Stück for four years and has just been released. Dark golden-yellow in color, the wine offers a deep, intense, precise and elegant bouquet of perfectly ripe and concentrated mirabelles along with very fine sur lie, spicy (milled white pepper), floral and herbal flavors. The oxidative style underlines the ripe fruit aromas and animates the subtle floral and biscuit flavors as well as the wine itself. Full-bodied, ripe and very elegant on the palate, this is a round, gorgeously lush yet remarkably fine, fresh, precise and filigreed Riesling. The finish is stimulatingly piquant and tightly woven, with persistent lime, lemon and earthy flavors. This is a beautifully balanced, quiet and rested Doosberg and one of the few German Rieslings I could eventually impress one of the Alsatian producers with as well. Tasted May 2018. Peter Jakob and Peter Bernhard's 2013 Riesling "R" is an unicum and represents the idea that special plots don't need a fixed plan for how long its wine should be aged. It's the wine itself that has the authority. The Kühns didn't know how long they would age their "R," but they were willing to give it the time it needed: "Perhaps three, four, five or even ten years? We wanted to know how this wine would develop on the lees. After four years, we found the wine had a great balance between intensity, finesse and vitality, and so we racked and bottled it." The result is mind-blowing for the 2013 vintage. It is one of the finest Rheingau Rieslings I have tasted in years and surely one of the most balanced and characterful dry 2013s in Germany.
WA Interim, 31.05.2018