With accolades like “Best Winemaker in Germany” and “Best White Wine in the World,” Schäfer-Fröhlich has become a premier Nahe address in a quarter-century’s time; it’s all thanks to Tim Fröhlich. Like most producers in the Nahe, which is surrounded by Rheinhessen, Rheingau, and the Mosel, the bulk of Tim’s production is Riesling. Actually, some of my favorite, unabashedly delicious “GG” bottlings (a special top tier for dry Riesling) have been from Schäfer-Fröhlich and this “village-level” bottling had so many gorgeously ripe textures, I had a strong feeling there was more behind the curtain. Turns out I was right: This is all from the “Felseneck” Grosse Lage (Grand Cru) vineyard in the village of Bockenau. The only reason it wasn’t bottled as a “GG?” It was harvested slightly earlier from younger vines. 

A veritable soil savant, Tim is able to coax the most out of his vines with a meticulous touch, no matter the vintage. Low yields, hand harvesting, and painstaking manual attention in the cellar also contribute to the purity and intensity of these wines. A brief aging regimen on fine lees in a mixture of stainless steel and barrels, plus the warmth of 2018, delivers a dry Riesling of freshness and hedonistic generosity. This is loaded with kiwi, mango peel, passionfruit, Makrut lime peel, white peach, wet slate, smoke, and exotic spice. Each layer blasts out tropical goodness that only takes a back seat to the churning mineral core. Enjoy a bottle now and stash your others away for consumption through this decade.