Egon Muller Scharzhof, Scharzhofberger Riesling Eiswein

About Egon Muller Scharzhof

Weingut Egon M ller is a renowned estate in the Saar valley sub-region of the Mosel in Germany. It exclusively works with the Riesling grape and is particularly known for its wines made from the exceptional Scharzhofberg vineyard southeast of Willingen. These wines are produced at a range of ripeness levels, including Kabinett, Sp tlese and Auslese, and Auslese Goldkapsel in the best years. If conditions allow, sweet Beerenauslese, Trockenbeerenauslese and Eiswein are also produced. The Scharzhofberg releases are among the most sought-after of all German wines and achieve some of Germany's highest prices at auction. Despite the trend towards drier wines in the Rheinland, the Sp tlese and Auslese tend to show plenty of residual sugar. Because the wines are not dry, they cannot be labeled as Grosses Gew chs (like Grand Cru), even though the vineyard is classified as such. All the wines need time to reach their peak and can age well; the Auslese can easily last half a century or more. A large section of 8.5 hectares (21 acres) on the grey shale slopes of the south-facing Scharzhofberg vineyard, behind the Scharzhof house and winery, forms the heart of the Egon M ller estate. This is widely held to be one of the great white wine vineyards in the world. There are also half a dozen smaller plots totalling no more than 4ha (10 acres), mostly a little further down-river on the southwest-facing banks of the horseshoe in the Saar between Wiltingen and Kanzem.