Riesling Wine Tasting in Germany’s Middle Mosel

Have you been to the Middle Mosel, aka the Mittelmosel, wine region of Germany? We just visited for the first time to tour and taste mostly Rieslings with five exceptional estates.

S.A. Pruem: Raimund Prum inherited the 800-year-old family winery in 1971; his oldest daughter Saskia took over as the owner in 2017. And though other places in the world make Riesling Raimund said that the “character of the wine is different here” which began over 2,000 years ago by the Romans. Raimund took us on a drive to the top of one of his vineyards, and it happened to be the oldest one that also is famous for its sundial.
I found myself describing the experience as both exhilarating and breathtaking, and these two words have now taken on a new meaning for me, probably forever. Raimund added to my thoughts when he said that here, we “always sit in the green.”

Eifel-Pfieffer: Award-winning Weingut Eifel-Pfeiffer has been in the same family since 1642 and is currently worked by three generations. We met with mother and daughter Tanja Gorgen-Eifel and Mia-Katharina Gorgen. We learned that they only produce Riesling wines and have the coveted 1A rating which means that some of their vineyards are considered the best in the area. I must give a special nod to a 1990 vintage from Trittenheimer Apotheke and the 2021 Mia.

Dr. Pauly-Bergweiler: We were greeted by Stefan Pauly, who led us on a tour of the estate. We “drank up” the history, and of course, the wines. We tasted many Rieslings, and even a beautifully made Eiswein, and were thrilled to discover that Total Wine stores carries their exclusive label, Dr. Heidemanns-Bergweiler.

Immich-Batterieberg: This time we had the opportunity to sit down and taste with winemaker Gernot Kollmann. We liked every wine that Gernot opened for us. Most were very dry, all are organic, and 96% of the wines that they make are Rieslings. What makes them special: they are the largest owner of old and ungrafted vineyards in the Mosel, all rocky and steep, and this winery dates back to 1425.

Villa Huesgen: Adolph Huesgen VIII wine curriculum vitae is almost as interesting as the winery itself. He regaled us in stories of his many collaborations (from Australia to South Africa), work in wineries in California (he started his career at Robert Mondavi) and what he and his family have currently achieved (sparkling, still, rosé in the original blue bottles Riesling were first made in) at Villa Huesgen. We tasted ten wines, one of which recently was listed as one of the top nine Rieslings in the world by the Robb Report April 2024.

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