Vinous: 92 Points
The 2022 Riesling Wiltinger Braune Kupp Kabinett opens with tart yet ripe apple flesh lemon overtones salty stone fresh green yarrow and slight smoke. The palate is very fine slender and absolutely juicy with freshness. Ripe lemon accentuates tart green-red apple yet the subtle residual sweetness also holds notions of Mirabelle that seem to eat up any residual sugar so the finish is just off-dry. (Off-dry) - By Anne Krebiehl MW on July 2023 What can one say about Egon Müller and his legendary estate on the Scharzhofberg? He is the fourth Egon in a line of Müllers that can trace their family ownership of this estate to 1797 when forebear Jean-Jacques ? or Johann Jakob ? Koch purchased the estate after Napoleon secularized all church property. Until then it was in monastic hands belonging to the Benedictine convent of St. Maria ad Martyres in Trier founded in 700; it is unclear when the Scharzhofberg was donated to the monastery. Its name is thought to derive from the Latin _ sarcire to clear land and there is evidence that even until the 18th century parts of the slope were used to grow _Lohhecken or coppiced oak whose bark was used for tanning leather. And while the vineyard on this singular hill is no longer a monopole (Koch had several children who divided the inheritance; one of them married Felix Müller the ancestor of the current incumbent) its fame is down to the Müller family to Egon Müller I in particular who took his Riesling international exhibitions like the Exposition Universelle in Paris in 1900. Müller owns more than eight hectares of the Scharzhofberg plus further vineyards in Saarburg Wiltingen Oberemmel and notably in Wiltingen?s Braune Kupp which carries the Le Gallais label half of this still belongs to the Le Gallais family. Still the wines are made in Müller?s cellar and the German authorities see the two names as one estate. These long-lived wines are always on light feet delicate and aromatic expressing the marginality of the Saar with great elegance. They rightly have cult status. In Egon Müller they have a guardian unmoved by-passing fashions and prevailing opinions. In 2022 harvest started on 17 September noted Müller and said there was heavy rain on 2/3 October which put the pressure on. ?We had to gather speed and were finished on 7 October? he said. ?This is comparatively early but the grapes were ripe. Since we were under much pressure towards the end there was not enough time to select the great wines but in the end the quality was satisfactory. The wines are already showing well especially compared to the 2021s at this stage. If I had to drink a bottle tonight I would rather drink 2022 than 2021.? I tasted the 2022s during my visit including one Auslese each from the Braune Kupp and the Scharzhofberg. ?For us Auslese always means botrytis? Müller explained his face turning into a smile as he remarked: ?But you must be able to tell the fungi apart? meaning that one must select scrupulously for pristine clean botrytis.
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