Weingart Mittelrhein Schloss Fürstenberg Riesling Spätlese 2003

The 2003 Weingart Schloss Fürstenberg Spätlese is a testament to Florian Weingart’s ability to find balance where others find excess.

While 2003 was famously scorched across Europe, the steep, slate-laden slopes of the Bopparder Hamm acted like a thermal battery, pushing sugar levels into the stratosphere while the old vines dug deep for mineral salvation.

Florian Weingart is a purist, and the Schloss Fürstenberg vineyard is one of the Mittelrhein’s crown jewels. In 2003, many producers made wines that felt heavy, but Weingart managed to preserve the tension. This Spätlese drinks more like a fine Auslese today, offering a rich, textural experience that only comes with twenty-plus years of patient cellaring.