Rausch Riesling Spätlese – from the VDP. Weingut Zilliken
The 2019 Zilliken Rausch Riesling Spätlese is a fruit-sweet, graceful Riesling from the VDP.GROSSE LAGE Saarburger Rausch. This delicately fruity, juicy, and inviting Saar Riesling from the Forstmeister Geltz Zilliken estate appears lithe and slender, full of minerality, with reserved fruit. Razor-sharp lime zest and candied oranges provide dazzlingly clear contours, reining in the natural sweetness to achieve an impressive balance. Over time, the aromas of the Riesling Spätlese unfold into the ripe, multi-layered juiciness of apricots, apples, and melons, finishing with a delicately salty kiss.
Rausch Riesling Spätlese 2019 – a wine and its values
- 8% alcohol
- 86.4g/l residual sugar
- 6.9g/l acidity
- 95 points Mosel Fine Wines
The long finish reveals the concentration of the Zilliken Riesling Spätlese. On the tongue, the Riesling Spätlese feels weightless. With a moderate alcohol content of 8%, it is an ideal companion for light dishes featuring chicken or fish, for sushi or scallops, or for spicy Asian cuisine. Even though it is captivating when young, it only reveals its full potential after 7–12 years of bottle aging. For those who do not wish to wait seven to twelve years, we offer aged Riesling Spätlesen from the Forstmeister Geltz Zilliken estate.
Incidentally, our cellar is cooled in the summer and heated in the winter by a geothermal heat pump powered by a photovoltaic system, ensuring the wine can mature optimally.
Weingut Zilliken – the 2019 vintage on the Saar
The 2019 wine year was a year of challenging weather conditions: the winter was dry, bud break occurred early, frost struck a low-lying parcel in the Rausch in April, the mulch layer between the vines proved its worth during the hot summer by preventing water stress, and the extremely hot days around 40 degrees Celsius did, however, cause some grapes to suffer sunburn. Consequently, great care was taken during the manual harvest in the autumn to ensure only healthy grapes were picked, with rigorous selection. Despite all the weather caprices and low yields, 2019 was a year with a high average temperature, and the result was ripe grapes. With their fine fruit, lively ripe acidity, and classic, mineral Saar spice, this Zilliken Riesling Spätlese is already a great pleasure to drink. The wines from the VDP.GROSSE LAGE Rausch of the 2019 vintage possess great aging potential.