Among the variety of German wines, Rieslings may well be the most internationally famous and beloved, earning the reputation of being the wine of a thousand faces because of the multitude of styles that exist. While the Mosel region may not be commonly associated as the homeplace of the Riesling grape variety (as compared to Alsace, for example), this region is likely the most renowned of the country’s thirteen official winemaking regions, producing some of the finest white wine in the world.

The Mosel River (also known by the French as the Moselle) flows from France to Germany, and it is along this winding river that some of the finest Rieslings in the world are produced. Along the Mosel River sits around a hundred kilometers of vineyards owned by German winemaker Markus Molitor, which was established in 1985 and produces a variety of wines, including an extensive range of fine German Rieslings.

The man and namesake behind Markus Molitor's Rieslings has been managing his family's domain since 1984 - the eight generation winemaker of his family, which is located at the heart of the Mosel region in an area called Wehlener and is home to grapevines that have existed for as long as around a hundred years. When Markus took over his family's estate, the vineyards at Wehlenerg Klosterberg only spanned 1.5 hectares, which has now been expanded to over 120 hectares across the Mosel region's steep slopes, extended towards the Saar and Ruwer areas. 90% of Markus Molitor's vineyards are planted with Riesling varieties, and through efforts to map out the various terroirs across the region, the vineyards capture the diversity of expressions that Rieslings have to offer.

Today, the Markus Molitor winemaking estate works with a variety of different growers throughout the region, owning around 70 percent of the estates vineyards while contracting the rest or purchasing grapes from others. The winemaker’s variety of Riesling styles can be deduced from the colours of the caps that top off each Riesling bottle – white for dry, green for off-dry, and golden of sweet, with each style showcasing the diversity of terroirs and characteristics that the Mosel region has to offer. 

The grapes that Markus Molitor works with are harvested from vines that sit on steep vineyards with a terroir of slate along the Mosel River. The steepness of the vineyard slopes helps the grapes to achieve more ripeness by allowing the vines to absorb more sunlight to produce more sugar, balancing the high natural acidity of the Mosel’s grapes. The time of the year that the grapes are harvested has a natural impact on the sweetness (or dryness) of the grape, and also helps to determine the classification of each of the Rieslings as indicated by their distinctly coloured bottle caps. Beyond the time of harvest and ripeness of the grapes, the style of the Riesling is also influenced by the winemaker’s choices during the fermentation process. A longer fermentation process results in more sugars being digested by natural bacteria, resulting in a drier flavour profile, while stopping the fermentation process earlier can help produce a sweeter wine. Imagine the possibilities and varieties that could come from just one grape varietal and within the same vineyard!

It’s often said that a great wine is a great showcase of its origin – when you immediately know its provenance just from tasting it. That is certainly the aspiration of Markus Molitor, through the winemaker’s extensive expressions of various wine and Riesling styles from the Mosel region. We had the privilege to have Markus Molitor’s brand ambassador to walk us through the winemaker’s range of dry, off-dry and sweet Rieslings to get a taste of how diverse and varied Rieslings can truly be!

Markus Molitor's brand ambassador sharing with us about the Mosel region in Germany.

Wine Review: Markus Molitor Haus Klosterberg Riesling Trocken 2022 

The Haus Klosterberg Riesling gets its name from its house at the monastery hill, which sits near a historic monastery over 800 years old. This white-capped wine classified as a dry Riesling is made from a blend of grape varieties from several vineyards, aged in 10 percent oak and most of the remaining ageing done in stainless steel vats.

Tasting Notes

Colour: Light Straw

Aroma: Fairly gentle, with some rustic qualities of hay and musk, along with a more well-defined minerality of slate and clay. Some soft mustiness of dried fruits slowly emerges, along with buds of elderflower. With time there begins to show sugared pineapples and apricots, yet proves restrained in its sweetness.

Taste: The sweetness is gentle here, yet the fruitiness is more apparent, with pineapples and apricots, tinned lychees too, along with more prominent florals of elderflower. It’s estery and fruity floral in tones, yet not overwhelmingly sweet, closer along the lines of a light dusting of powdered sugar. Medium-bodied.

Finish: More on those pineapples - lots of pineapples in fact. It’s a clean finish with just a light minerality and specks of pepper.

My Thoughts

An easy going, really approachable Riesling that’s clearly designed to be friendly and therefore restrained. It’s nevertheless pretty expressive, you still get all these fruits, florals and even minerality that shines through, making it a really engaging expression. It’s very restrained on the sweetness, delicate in fact, and so you don’t have to worry about this being over the top. In particular, I really enjoyed that clay on the nose which felt like the terroir showing itself, and that amping up of the fruits on the palate, which was estery without being sweet. A really, really enjoyable easy going Riesling that’s a crowd-pleaser.

Wine Review: Markus Molitor Alte Reben Saar Riesling Trocken 2022

Moving on to Markus Molitor’s Alte Reben Saar Riesling, another dry Riesling as classified by its white cap – this wine is made from a blend of grapes from old vines (as Alte Reben translates to from German) and grapes from the Saar region. These grapes were harvested at lower yields and are generally riper, with the old wines having more concentration, and then subsequently aged in oak.

Tasting Notes

Colour: Light Straw

Aroma: Decidedly richer, the floral tones here come through more powerfully, whilst the bouquet here is more rounded. Vanilla frosting and frosted cereal fills the bouquet, along with some lighter touches of pineapples and tinned apricots.

Taste: That richness carries to the body, where there’s more on tinned fruit syrup. Definitely sweeter yet overall still fairly restrained and gentle. Those apricots and pineapples continue to show up, lighter and brighter here, filling in that rounder and fuller, more supple body. Medium-bodied.

Finish: It takes a more syrupy turn here, some oak showing through as well. It persists in that rounded and more plush texture, with more on runny honey, tinned fruit syrup, with a bias towards being more apricot forward, and just a touch of pineapples. 

My Thoughts

This was definitely sweeter and rounded, giving it a richer and more supple feel to it, yet still remains far from overdoing it, with the sweetness really well managed. Nevertheless that richness seems to have allowed the florals and fruits to be delivered more expressively, here it’s even brighter and lighter in tone, although this does seem to come at the expense of that minerality which isn’t as obvious here. A solid execution of a classic Riesling that would fit the bill of what most folks would have in mind.

Wine Review: Markus Molitor Bernkasteler Badstube Spatlese Riesling 2022

Markus Molitor’s green-capped Bernkasteler Badstube Spatlese Riesling is a classified as off-dry, made from a blend of grape varieties from the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer regions. This wine was aged in stainless steel to preserve its freshness, while also having undergone spontaneous fermentation, enhancing the characteristics and profile of this wine.

Tasting Notes

Colour: Light Straw

Aroma: It opens more confectionary, with more frosting along with richer notes of pineapples and apricots. It’s certainly riper and bolder here, with just a light splash of honey. It’s quite evocative of a stroll down a fresh fruit orchard. There’s also a more waxy, yet honeyed quality of beeswax that envelops the bouquet. A light sulphur touch trails behind.

Taste: Really fruity! It’s richer and fuller, with big notes of pineapples and apricots, decked in tinned fruit syrup. Here there’s loads of honey, also more syrupy, with a spritz of apple juice, definitely rounder and more velvety. There’s not so much in the way of acidity here. And with time some more musky jackfruits begin to appear.

Finish: The richness persists into the finish, more of that tinned fruit syrup and honey. It’s a clean and resolute finish, that concludes nicely and with great seamlessness. 

My Thoughts

I found this to be a really bold, flavour forward and characterful expression. Whilst it amped up the sweetness here, giving it a more confectionary and somewhat syrupy quality, it’s also brought out more complexity. On the nose, beyond the overt fruitiness - which itself was incredibly aromatic and evocative, fresh and naturalistic - there was also this sweet waxy quality of beeswax, as well as some sulphur, which came through in an almost meaty way that added to the nose in a very aromatic fashion, think fresh produce.

On the palate, again we find this great fruitiness, but also some muskiness by means of jackfruit. The finish was really firm and rich, very seamless and a completely masterful conclusion. This was a very enjoyable and impressive expression that showed a lot of personality!

Wine Review: Markus Molitor Kinheimer Rosenberg Kabinett Riesling 2022 

We eventually move on to one of Markus Molitor’s gold-capped sweet Rieslings – the Kinheimer Rosenberg Kabinett Riesling. This wine was made from grapes from the Kinheimer Rosenberg area in Germany’s Mosel region

Tasting Notes

Colour: Very Light Tint

Aroma: It starts with some confectionary frosting, yet in its roundedness here, it’s not quite as sweet, yet its rich and plush. The aromas are filled in with light wafts of pineapples and jackfruits, it’s getting more honeyed. Some heady white florals of jasmines begin to emerge. It’s delicate and gentle on the nose.

Taste: More richness and roundedness shows up on the palate. It’s got this really supple and velvety quality, almost gently syrupy. It’s filled in with honey, a touch of caramel, along with apricots and apples. It’s also got a lightly fizzy touch.

Finish: Rich and plush into the finish, there’s more honey and apple juice. It delivers a clean finish with a very nice crispness. Very seamless through the finish!

My Thoughts

This is a fresher and more balanced take on some of the Rieslings of before, it keeps some of its sweetness but definitely dials it back a little, although those yellow fruits and white florals still do shine through nicely. Perhaps what is more enjoyable here is the textures of its body, it’s incredibly supple and velvety, almost a little syrupy, yet holds back the sweetness, and even includes in a little fizzy touch. It’s crisp on the finish, yet incredibly seamless in how it’s delivered. A very approachable and all rounded, balanced Riesling here.

Till next time, happy sipping!

@ChopstickPride