SUPER SPECIAL - last few cases.
2019 Prinz Doosberg GG (Grand Cru) RRP: $129 $69
Take a further 5% off on the below wines in Straight or Mixed 6-Packs!
Email your selection to wine@randalls.net.au
Weingut Prinz - from the Heart of Rhiengau
Fred Prinz, his horticulturalist wife Sabine, and his "secret weapon" son Florien (who spends a lot of time and huge efforts tying up the long canes like Leroy in Burgundy, and is also the "soft-pruning" driver at this 11ha estate) all work hard in these biodynamic vines. The vines are mostly from Hendelberg 1er Cru, and 5 Grand Cru sites, all fairly elevated, and most are over 1km from the Rhine. This means that the nights are much cooler with acid-retention results, and the south-facing gentle slope means that the grapes ripen very well, and whilst the grapes are kept cool at night, any dangerous frosty air "slides" down the hill. Fred is a big believer in foot-stomping most of the grapes and fermentations are started with a natural starter ("pied de cuve") made from early-picked grapes partially fermented with natural yeasts from the vineyard in question.
Fred's wines are full of powerful riesling fruit and tension but also have yeast-lees character and skin-contact derived textural grip. He uses a mix of tank and big barrels to give the right balance of richness, "openness", and the tight tension and grip of natural ripe 'cool -ripened" riesling. Cheers, Randall
2024 Gutswein Riesling Trocken $48
I am a big fan of this 2024 wine, perhaps the cooler year classicism or the 20% crop reduction (sadly, Dönhoff in a more “difficult” area in 2024, lost 70% of the crop!) that has helped create something amazing for a wine labelled “estate trocken”. The aroma is lemon pith, tropical fruit, yeast-lees inflected, “alive” and vibrant. The flavour is strong, almost pulsating and complex with stacks of beautiful riesling fruit, river stream mossy rocks, slight fresh herb nuances and a classy long minerally finish.
Fred says; “Very good fruit, minerality and balance; I like this vintage.” - Randall
2024 Hendelberg Riesling Kabinett $61 | $54
'This really radical riesling Kabinett has gigantic racy acidity and incredibly precise aromas of crisp pears, white peaches and Asian pears. Then comes the extremely focused, sleek and light-bodied palate that’s so fresh it could wake the dead. Hang onto your hat for the dazzlingly original finish. Very limited production from this producer’s highest-altitude parcel in this high-altitude site.'
96 points - Stuart Pigott, James Suckling
Hendelberg Erste Lagen (1er Cru)
This 1er cru, from a steep more slatey section of Hendelberg, is from vines 10-40yo. This site is the furthest 1er or grossen lagen from the Rhine (1.5k away). In the pre-grossen lagen classification book Wine Atlas of Germany, Hendelberg was rated as one of the “Exceptional Vineyards”, along with Berg Schlossberg, Jungfer etc.
Fred uses "Pied de cuve" / spontaneous fermentation with steel and barrel for and ageing. Of his two 1er Crus (also Fruhenberg) this one is the fuller and more textured of the two. There is a fresh ginger spice, loads of fruit and a forceful drive. - Randall
2022 Hendelberg EL (1er Cru) $82
'[..] Staggering wet-stone minerality at the enormously energetic finish. Excellent aging potential! [..]'95 points - Stuart Piggott, James Suckling
2023 Hendelberg EL (1er Cru) $89
'The deep nose of wild herbs and flint pulls you inexorably into this incredibly focused and fundamentally minerally dry riesling that also has great mountain freshness. So much power and drive is packed into the medium-bodied palate, as if extra physical dimensions were somehow hidden inside the wine. Gigantically energetic wet stone finish.' 96 points - Stuart Piggott, James Suckling
Schönhell Grossen Lagen
Schönhell or “Beautiful Slope” grand cru is a tiny plot of just 5ha and Fred has a small part of this, and he bottles it all in screw-caps. It’s not given much if any foot-stomping, and is fermented with selected yeasts to keep the finesse and purity. With this in mind, it is still beautifully firm in texture and has surprising complexity. Fred believes that for the first 5 years in bottle it’s better than Jungfer, but after that Jungfer takes the limelight. - Randall
2022 Schönhell Riesling Trocken GG $129 Screw Cap
'[..] At once ripe and tightly wound with lots of wet stony freshness and a vibrant acidity that carries the very long, energetic finish. This really needs some more time in the bottle to realize the excellent potential.' 94 points - Stuart Piggott, James Suckling
2023 Schönhell Riesling Trocken GG $129 Screw Cap
'Extremely cool and delicate with a wealth of dried herb and candied citrus peel aromas, this very sophisticated dry riesling combines a sleek and compact medium-bodied palate with tremendous freshness and precision. The yellow fruit aromas expand steadily as the wine aerates in the glass, then at the finish the wild berry and slate notes twirl themselves around your tongue in the most extraordinary manner.'
98 points - Stuart Pigott, James Suckling
Jungfer Grossen Lagen
Jungfer, or “Virgin” is a plot where Nuns used to go and pray, is a truly great site with higher quartz content giving accentuated minerality (it’s a little cooler than Schonhell also). Fred usually uses 20% foot-stomped component and 20% barrel-aged component (the same barrels each year) with pied de cuve and selected yeasts. These are very powerful, well-structured wines with some ripe “Turkish delight” character, lime and lemon spectrum, great texture and grip. - Randall
2022 Jungfer Riesling Trocken GG $144
'Incredibly complex and cool nose, this is extremely fresh without the yeastiness that often accompanies this. Reine claude plum and crisp pear aromas, but also intense notes of herb garden after rain and ferns. Stunningly energetic and racy with such a pure and expressive finish.' 95 points - Stuart Piggott, James Suckling
2023 Jungfer Riesling Trocken GG $144
'If you ever doubted that wine could taste minerally, then here is hardcore minerality that should convince the most skeptical wine drinker. As straight as a laser beam extending out toward infinity. The almost supernatural vibrancy is so dominant that I have to force myself to consider matters such as concentration and balance, but they are far above any norm, even for the GG category. From an east-facing site with very poor quartz soil.' 98 points - Stuart Pigott, James Suckling
2022 Doosberg Riesling Trocken GG $144
'...the merest touch of blossom honey on the nose amidst its Mirabelle juiciness, denoting ripeness and generosity. The palate, however, is a picture of coolness and clarity-bright, radiant and glowing with fruit, but with a fine soothing aspect and beautifully expressive stone fruit. This has fill but no fat. Lovely. (Bone-dry)
93 points - Anne Krebiehl, Vinous
2023 Marcobrunn Riesling Trocken GG $232
Purity and elegance and real class is what I wrote upon the first sip. This is truly a great grand cru of a wine. We could get 60 bottles, and Fred says “it’s a deep “dark” wine, like a red. A wine for pondering.” Randall
"Monumental power at the compact core" 98 Points - Stuart Pigott, James Suckling
'It has a salty, savory kind of reduction on the nose that is reminiscent of wet walnut. The palate sweeps in with creaminess, elan and significant power, subsuming everything in its joyful path. This is buffered, slightly spicy and long. The 2023 is simply gorgeous and quietly expressive. (Bone-dry)" 96 points - Anne Krebiehl, Vinous
2022 Hendelberg Spätburgunder RRP: $119 | $99
This is from 15-30yo vines with 10-12K vines per hectare. It’s destemmed by hand and plunged gently by hand during the ferment in a 500lt vessel. It’s aged in 228lt barrels of which 20% are new, however the fresh and powerful pinot fruit completely cover the new oak. This is beautifully clean, vibrant and juicy, with a “seductive, come here” nose and a lovely generously flavoured and elegant palate. This is the first time we have chosen to import some of Fred’s reds and we are so pleased with this wine. - Randall
2022 Hendelberg Spätburgunder "La Chapelle" RRP: $175 | $150
This is from a (you guessed it) section of vines near a chapel in Hendelberg with French clones that give super fragrance and silky palate but a lighter colour. The grapes, destemmed by hand, are fermented in barrels with heads removed standing on end. There is no new oak but this is given 2 full years of barrel ageing. Such ethereal pinots like this are rare, and we could get just 36 bottles. - Randall
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'... hand de-stemmed and fermented in open cuve, then matured in used barriques. The suppleness of toasty oak blends with lifted raspberry, petrichor, orange peel and iron oxide on the complex nose. The palate unravels like silk with dense, ripe tannins that frame the beautifully aromatic fruit. A touch of fine dark chocolate adds a little more texture and richness to this wonderfully captured wine. The 2022 is as fresh as it is smooth and as dense as it is fine. (Bone-dry)' 94 points - Anne Krebiehl, Vinous
