By Anne Krebiel MW | September 03, 2024

REICHSRAT VON BUHL
Monika Schmid says, “in 2023, there were problems with wetness and warmth. After an extremely dry summer, August and September rains filled the grapes with water. We had to select a lot, but you got really good results working by hand.” She notes that harvest started in the last week of August for Sekt, followed by the pre-harvest for their Bone Dry series, then the Erste Lagen and finally the GGs. The Sekt base came in before the rain, especially the Pinot Noirs. “For the single-site wines, we made two tries to select negatively, and then we sat it out,” she says, with harvest finishing on 5 October. She presented a really beautiful collection of GGs, understated and unshowy but full of elegance and promise.

2022 KIRCHENSTÜCK RIESLING GG | 95 POINTS
The 2022 Riesling Forster Kirchenstück Grosses Gewächs unites creaminess with flint on the nose. Only after considerable time in the glass does this unpack gorgeous etheral notes of dried yarrow. The palate has a core of pithy dried citrus peel. This charms not with aroma but with concentration, stony and earthy, with an understated, finessed textural appeal on the smooth, slender mid-palate. There is an undeniable feeling of rounded, serene completeness here.
Drinking window: 2028 – 2060 | Anne Krebiehl. Tasting date: July 2024

2022 PECHSTEIN RIESLING GG | 95 POINTS
The 2022 Riesling Forster Pechstein Grosses Gewächs, from parcels bordering the forest, shows a gorgeous herbal scent that blends with lovely, flinty reduction, featuring chervil, watercress and cumin overtones. The palate has serene, concentrated, ripe, streamlined depth on a superslender body. This is understated an beautifully elegant.
Drinking window: 2028 – 2060 | Anne Krebiehl. Tasting date: July 2024

2022 JESUITENGARTEN RIESLING GG | 94 POINTS
The 2022 Riesling Forster Jesuitengarten Grosses Gewächs opens with sunny charm and supple, creamy Mirabelle plum. The deeply grounded palate is as linear as usual but manages to pack in juicy, ripe, vivid fruit. Serene and bright with a lovely spine of dried lemon peel, it focuses all the fruity richness into elongated freshness.
Drinking window: 2028 – 2058 | Anne Krebiehl. Tasting date: July 2024

2022 FREUNDSTÜCK RIESLING GG | 94 POINTS
The 2022 Riesling Forster Freundstück Grosses Gewächs is from a small site next to Kirchenstück. Made n a mix of used tonneaux and Stück, the nose has a distinct sense of smoky oak. The palate presents vivid dried lemon peel an pit, pervasive, concentrated and not quite as understated as the rest of the portfolio. Beautifully citric, almost with a touch of citrus oil, this is wonderfully bright, long and linear.
Drinking window: 2028 – 2050 | Anne Krebiehl. Tasting date: July 2024

2022 UNGEHEUER RIESLING GG | 94 POINTS
The 2022 Riesling Forster Ungeheuer Grosses Gewächs, from the core parcel of this historic site, has a substle nose where passion fruit shimmers in the background. More air reveals wet earth alongside Mirabelle plum. The palate also hast this earthy-fruity vibe, grounding it and making it sink deeper into soil while also portraying exquisitely lemony stone fruit. Concentrated, incisive and really elegant.
Drinking window: 2028 – 2050 | Anne Krebiehl. Tasting date: July 2024

2022 KIESELBERG RIESLING GG | 92 POINTS
The 2022 Riesling Deidesheimer Kieselberg Grosses Gewächs emerges from an elevated site of deposite Rhine gravels, as sunny as it is ventilated, ensuring high ripness and a late harvest. It comes with an exquisite scent of crushed wild thyme, subtle, lifted and serene, lending a lovely accent to supple, ripe Mirabelle fruit. The palate is beautiful taut, defined by dried lemon peel and absolute zestiness, yet always with that enticing suggestion of juicy stone fruit. Long and elegant.
Drinking window: 2028 – 2046 | Anne Krebiehl. Tasting date: July 2024