We finally met the mercurial Dr Ernst Loosen, owner and winemaker of Dr Loosen wines at a recent masterclass of eight Rieslings from his vineyards. We missed his presence at a Dr Loosen wine tasting last year.
Some of the dry Dr Loosen Rieslings
The Riesling masterclass was at Asiaeuro Wines & Spirits HQ in Petaling Jaya where Dr Loosen gave an erudite account of his family wine estate which dates back more than 200 years. It grows only Riesling, some 50,000 hectares of it, on the steep slopes along the Mosel River in Germany.
When Dr Loosen took over the family estate in 1988, he discovered a treasure of ungrafted vines averaging 60 years old in some of the best vineyards in Germany. He set about to create world-class Rieslings by restricting crop size, with strict fruit selection and using only organic fertilisers. He introduced gentle cellar practices to allow the wines to come to their full potential.
In 1980 Dr Loosen, who is an archaeologist by training, found a winemaker book dating back to 1870 in his Grandpa’s library. He read about how to produce a noble Rhine wine which is supposed to age if you don’t rack the wine four years in a row and then you can keep the wine 20 years in their yeast in the barrel. “In 1981 I kept it 27 years in the barrel and it tasted younger and younger,” he said. “It proved that long aging in the barrel need not produce oxidised wine.
“In 2008 I produced dry wines in the style of Grandpa, with a GG (Great Growth) logo to indicate the vineyard on the label is a Grand Cru vineyard.”
Dr Loosen taking us on a journey through his vineyards in Mosel
He said this as we tasted the second wine – Graacher Himmelreich Riesling GG Alt Reben Dry 2015 – which had a most welcoming lingering dryness. We like this a lot — with crisp yellow stone fruit and pineapple on the nose, and concentrated fruit and mineral complexity.
The grapes for this Riesling come from three different parcels with a minimum age of 130 years! “They are seedless, small virgin fruits with naturally low yields. They make perfect dry wines. Long yeast contact works against oxidation, with positive influence of oak again. I’m now doing lots of historic wine making to be released in 20 years.”
We could look forward to a GG Riesling which has been sitting on yeast in the barrel for eight years since 2013, to be bottled in 2021.
The tasting had started with the Riesling Dry Qualitatswein 2016, which was a dry Riesling that was fresh and fruity (grapefuit and pineapple) and left a good impression on those of us who like dry wines very much.
The golden colour of the luscious Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese 1988 on the left
From the GG Riesling, we moved to a medium dry dimension in the Riesling Qualitatswein 2016. It’s got a snappy acidity with peach, pear and apple coming through. It’s got a bit sweeter.
The sweetness ups a notch with the Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Kabinett 2016 that has a mineral, citrus accent with apple and green peach flavours. “It’s a traditional, family style wine that’s fruity and makes a beautiful aperitif. It has a lower alcohol content and higher acidity,” said Dr Loosen.
The man and his Rieslings
The Urziger Wurzgarten Riesling Spatlese 2016 has smoky, minerally notes, with baked apple and peach flavours and citrusy hints. The grapes are from the only vineyard based on red volcanic soil. It’s a sweeter wine which could probably be served to those who are starting out on wine drinking.
The Uziger Wurzgarten Riesling Spatlese 1997 has richness and body, with spicy aromas and a certain earthiness. It’s more yellow and has been fermented on natural yeast, sitting in a barrel for 20 years before being released. It tastes young and fresh and has a more complex sweetness that kind of grows on you. The sweet gives way to dry on the palate as you drink it.
The Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese 2012 is from a steep and rocky single vineyard sitting on blue late soil. Sonnenuhr means sun dial and there is one perched atop this spectacular vineyard.The morning moisture produces botrytis, hence the sweetness of the wine but there is also a delicate crisp acidity balancing the pure peach and lemon flavours.
I guess age matters when it comes to the Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese 1988. It’s a luscious medium sweet wine made from very ripe grapes touched by botrytis. The sweetness glides smoothly and elegantly up and makes you like it more.
This range of Dr Loosen Rieslings is distributed by Asiaeuro Wines & Spirits Sdn Bhd, tel: 03-7883 2828. Visit also www.asiaeurowines.com and https://drloosen.com/