2002 Germany & Mosel Riesling Vintage

Decanter's harvest report of 15 October 2002 says June conditions were ideal across Germany, giving good fruit set. Decanter's report adds that July and August were warm, with temperatures reaching 40 degrees C on some days, and that sporadic showers led to some early botrytis. Decanter's vintage guide says expectations were high by the middle of July, but that moist, warm weather then set in until the end of September. The harvest report reads September differently, calling it the best weather in four years, dry and sunny with cold nights, apart from some late September rain reported by Buerklin-Wolf in the Pfalz. Robert Weil in the Rheingau and Buerklin-Wolf started picking some sites in the second week of October, and Mosel producers were a little later, according to the report. In the Mosel, Weingut Fritz Haag began some picking on 14 October and was holding on for higher must weights in its top vineyards, despite early signs of botrytis. The vintage guide says intermittent rain set in from mid-October for a month, reducing the possibility of noble sweet Riesling in certain regions, so fine Rieslings depended on picking at the right moment and selecting individual grapes.

• June: ideal conditions and good fruit set across Germany (Decanter harvest report)
• July and August: warm, up to 40 degrees C on some days, with sporadic showers bringing some early botrytis (Decanter harvest report)
• September: dry and sunny with cold nights per Decanter's harvest report, but moist and warm per its vintage guide
• Mid-October onward: intermittent rain for a month, per Decanter's vintage guide

Decanter's vintage guide says that in spite of the rains, great wines were made in all the main regions. It names the Saar and Ruwer for the star Rieslings, with the Middle Mosel almost as fine, as were Rieslings from the Mittelrhein, Rheingau, Nahe, Pfalz and Wurttemberg. The Rheingau suffered from rain, hail and then rot, though some top estates made very fine Rieslings.

• Saar and Ruwer: the star Rieslings of the vintage, per Decanter's vintage guide
• Middle Mosel: almost as fine; Weingut Fritz Haag told Decanter, "The grapes have a high level of ripeness and fine acidity."
• Rheingau: rain, hail and then rot, though some top estates made very fine Rieslings

Decanter's vintage guide credits Schloss Saarstein and Fritz Haag, along with many other growers in the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer, with superb traditional Riesling Spatlese. For dry wines, the guide says Grosses Gewachs and other top dry Rieslings were dominated by Pfalz growers, naming Buerklin-Wolf, Bassermann-Jordan and Christmann, with Breuer in the Rheingau and Dautel in Wurttemberg also making exceptional dry Rieslings.

• Schloss Saarstein and Fritz Haag: superb traditional Riesling Spatlese (Decanter vintage guide)
• Pfalz: Buerklin-Wolf, Bassermann-Jordan and Christmann led for Grosses Gewachs and other top dry Rieslings
• Buerklin-Wolf: selected botrytis grapes from some top Riesling vineyards as early as the first week of October, including a Riesling TBA at 220 degrees Oechsle (Decanter harvest report)