Steffen — Mosel Riesling

Steffen

A family estate on the Mosel, working the steep slate slopes around Trittenheim and Erden. Riesling is the grape; the vineyard name on the label — Trittenheimer Altärchen, Trittenheimer Apotheke, Erdener Treppchen — is the individual slope the wine came from.

Reading the labels

German Riesling labels state ripeness at harvest, not sweetness in the bottle. Kabinett is the lightest, Spätlese a later picking, Auslese later still. A wine marked Trocken is dry regardless of that category — so Spätlese Trocken is a ripe picking fermented out dry, while an Auslese without Trocken is sweet.

The range

Trittenheimer Altärchen Riesling Spätlese Trocken Reserve is the dry Riesling; Erdener Treppchen Riesling Auslese, in half bottles, is the sweet one. Around them: a Spätburgunder Rosé, a Riesling Sekt, a Dornfelder Glühwein for winter, and ST0,5 Riesling Entalkoholisiert — a de-alcoholised Riesling, which is worth knowing about if you are hosting anyone who is not drinking.

Serving

Dry Riesling at 10–12°C, Auslese at 8–10°C in small pours. Mosel Riesling is among the longest-lived white wines made — dry bottles hold a decade, sweet ones far longer.