2016 Willi Schaefer Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Spatlese

Scents of ripe pear and pineapple garlanded in heliotrope set the stage for a polished, subtly creamy palate performance at once luscious, invigoratingly tangy, and loaded with seductive inner-mouth perfume. I thought the corresponding Kabinett exquisitely delicate, but this Spätlese seems virtually weightless. The lingering finish is almost like an inhalation of flowers and wet stone, save for the tingling impingement of pear skin, a faint tang of pineapple core and a nip of cress. I sense that I may be in the minority, but I perceive 2016 as one of those vintages chez Schaefer where Himmelreich gives Domprobst a very serious run for its money. Vinous Media 93