This represented my first “look” at a Loosen “Hommage” bottling, one that spent just over three years in cask and was then held back for release until 2019. Its “Reserve” counterpart – which spent two years in cask – has remained very impressive since I first tasted it in late summer 2015, and this “Hommage” makes a plausible case for the virtues of yet longer time on the lees – though whether the benefits justify the extra cost (to Loosen, not to mention his customers) is hard for me to say. The most remarkable thing about this wine is the degree to which, like its “Reserve” counterpart, it retains bright, site-typical fresh strawberry and kiwi fruit while delivering an enhancement of the mineral elements already found in the corresponding “regular” Grosses Gewächs and introducing considerable textural enhancement. Indeed, this “Hommage” has so much in common with its “Reserve” counterpart that I urge readers to compare my review of the latter. The aromatics of the “Hommage” have taken on an even more spirituous cast, but by way of penetrance and ethereal presentation rather than from any outright volatility. And there is a combination of buoyancy, creaminess of texture and transparency to nuance such as I associate with very-late-bottled Rieslings from the Wachau’s Nikolaihof. With the “Reserve” there is zestier invigoration than with the “Hommage,” but they share the same saliva-inducing salinity, and this “Hommage” finishes with haunting intrigue of moss, wet stone and wisps of smoke.

Delicate aromas of white peach, pie nuts and lemon oil. Succulent but nicely delineated star fruit is finely paired with an elegant acid drive. A wine with nice weight, subtle depth and attractive finishing spices.