2014 Germany & Mosel Riesling Vintage

The winter was mild and the spring very warm, with bud break in early April and flowering from early to mid June in dry weather, largely without problems. Two frost nights, on 17 April and 4 May, and hail on Easter Monday dimmed the picture a little, but the damage was hardly significant overall. The start of the season was brutally early, with a record early, quick flowering that raised hopes of a plentiful harvest. The rain growers had been waiting for after the dry spring arrived from July in abundance, often as heavy downpours and violent thunderstorms, and August was wet too, more so the further north: Winningen measured about 333 liters per square meter over July and August, Bernkastel 295 and Trier 240. The summer was cooler and rainier than usual, which slowed ripening. September was much drier, with 46.6 liters at Winningen, 26 at Bernkastel and 17.6 at Trier, though the weather swung between sunny days with cool nights and unfavorable humid, warm spells, and heavy rain on 20 and 21 September set off mudslides on the Terrassenmosel. Riesling crews started earlier than in previous years to head off rot and crop loss, at the end of September on the Terrassenmosel and about a week later, around 5 October, in the Trier area and on the Saar. Heavy rain around 7 and 8 October played havoc with ripe, soft-skinned grapes. Most Riesling was in by about 20 October, though larger estates picked until the end of October. The crop for Mosel, Saar and Ruwer was estimated at about 900,000 hectoliters, 270,000 more than 2013 and in line with the long-term average after two small harvests.

• Bud break in early April; flowering early to mid June in dry weather; frost nights on 17 April and 4 May did little damage
• July and August rainfall: about 333 liters per square meter at Winningen, 295 at Bernkastel and 240 at Trier
• Riesling picking began at the end of September on the Terrassenmosel and around 5 October in the Trier area and on the Saar
• Heavy rain around 7 and 8 October played havoc with ripe, soft-skinned grapes; the crop was in line with the long-term average

The October rain had far less impact in the Saar and the Ruwer than in parts of the Middle Mosel and the Terrassenmosel. Mosel Fine Wines found Saar and Ruwer wines cleaner in flavor, often with higher acidity, gave the Ruwer and Saar the edge over the Middle Mosel for consistency, though not necessarily at the top, and found some great wines on the Terrassenmosel while advising double caution there. Hail affected the Saar Valley. Yields varied widely too: the Terrassenmosel brought in a much smaller crop than expected, while parts of the Middle Mosel and the Trier area saw higher yields, with some top sites on the Terrassenmosel and Middle Mosel bringing in only two Fuder per hectare while growers in other parts reached their quota limits.

• Saar and Ruwer: far less affected by the October rain
• Middle Mosel and Terrassenmosel: parts were hit harder by the October rain
• Terrassenmosel: a much smaller crop than expected, and mudslides after heavy rain on 20 and 21 September
• Some top sites on the Terrassenmosel and Middle Mosel yielded only two Fuder per hectare

The average Riesling must weight was 75 degrees Oechsle, with most of the crop between Qualitätswein and Spätlese, though Auslese, BA and TBA were also harvested. The bulk of production was made at QbA, Kabinett or Spätlese levels, with few growers going for Auslese, BA or TBA despite the botrytis, and little made. Nik Weis told Wine Spectator, "we had to watch the grapes getting more and more botrytis-affected and rotten. That happened very quickly." The spotted wing drosophila (Kirschessigfliege) appeared in greater numbers in the Mosel for the first time, mainly in Dornfelder and Frühburgunder, with much less impact than in red wine regions.

• Average Riesling must weight 75 degrees Oechsle; most of the crop Qualitätswein to Spätlese
• Auslese, BA and TBA were picked, but little was made
• Spotted wing drosophila hit mainly Dornfelder and Frühburgunder, with limited impact in the white-dominated Mosel

Mosel Fine Wines called 2014 a highly heterogeneous vintage, the most inhomogeneous it had ever experienced, with strokes of genius sometimes right next to the very ordinary. It quoted Egon Müller: "2014 was made in the vineyard." Quality varied hugely, even within collections at leading estates. Wines from clean fruit showed classic flavors and an ethereal lightness probably not seen since the 1990s, while many wines were affected by some form of acetic acidity or off-flavors of mushroom and bitter almond. Its buying advice: the best Kabinett and Spätlese are among the finest since the 1990s, a few superb fresh and crisp dessert wines were made in frightfully small quantities, and a few truly great dry wines were made, with smaller dry bottlings often better balanced and cleaner than top ones. Annegret Reh-Gartner of Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt told Wine Spectator, "Berry and cluster selection was decisive for good quality," and said the stringent selection reduced yields. The Moselwein e.V. found the young wines showed good extract, balanced, well-integrated acidity and clear fruit.

• The best Kabinett and Spätlese are among the finest since the 1990s, in Mosel Fine Wines' buying advice
• Many wines showed acetic acidity or off-flavors of mushroom and bitter almond