The 2017 Pittermännchen Riesling Spätlese is very clear and elegant on the ripe and flinty, slightly caramelly nose. Lush and elegant on the palate, this is a straight, vital and racy Spätlese with sharp but fine acidity that cuts through its sweetness. This is an electrifying Spätlese with remarkable tension and piquancy. Highly stimulating but still terribly young, Tasted in July 2019.

If titillating acidity and tantalising delicacy of sweetness are your idea of Spätlese, this is the one for you. The fruit may be ripe, but initially it seems gentle rather than overwhelming. Let it linger on the palate, however, and it keeps expanding into a truly juicy flavour and rich texture. It’s a kind of dilemma Spätlese: you enjoy it now and then wonder whether you should have kept it for a few years. (MS)