2022 Gunderloch Nackenheimer Rothenberg Riesling Grosses Gewachs, Rheinhessen, Germany

(3.5g RS/8g acid/12% alc) Gunderlochs crown jewel vineyard is the Nackenheimer Rothenberg, one of the top grosse lagen (grand crus) of the RoterHang (a 5km stretch of steep vineyards along the Rhine river composed of iron-rich, blood-red slate and clay). The Rothenberg is almost a monopolefor Gunderloch, and they are unquestionably the most important vintner working in the site. They pick between twenty and thirty parcels here fromvines up to forty years old, vinifying them separately. The GG selections are macerated for a few days, then quickly pressed and placed in barrelswithout pre-clarification and spontaneously fermented to total dryness. The DNA of the Roter Hang is expressed as purely as possible here, perhapseven more so than the Niersteiner sites. Dark stone aromas accompany yellow fruits and savory green herbs (think marjoram, basil, etc) in a burnished,layered, extremely complex wine walking the line consistently between power and elegance.