VINTAGE REPORTS
Vintage report 2009
The 2009 Vintage year at Weingut St. Urbans-Hof yielded bright, age able wines of classic Riesling style, in lower quantities but of exceptional quality that will be remembered as one of the great vintages. Our Saar vineyard wines, in particular, are the stars of this vintage.
The Vintage Year
The winter months of the 2009 vintage year brought some short, unusually cold spells, at one point even reaching temperatures of -17 degrees C. Although a few of our younger vines experienced some frost injury, we were spared any severe damage. The warmth of spring started late, in the end of March, but with higher than average temperatures which encouraged an early flowering. The flowering period was then prolonged by cool and rainy weather, stretching the process out over two weeks, as opposed to the normal period of just a few days. This disturbance in the flowering wrought lower bud set and fewer grapes resulting in lower overall yields (approx. -20%) than last year. On the positive side this situation benefits overall quality by naturally reducing yields and necessity for thinning grapes manually.
The early part of the summer was humid, causing vigorous growth but bringing intense danger of fungus infection. We expended extra efforts in the vineyards throughout the summer to stave off the constant threat of fungus growth. With intelligent and sustainable treatment of the vines and an accurate trellising and canopy management, we were able to keep the vines in good health.
Early summer, also brought sufficient and sometimes heavy rains in the Mosel. This was an advantage because there was no water stress for the vines. The Saar was dryer, which is good for that part of the region. The Saar doesn’t need as much rain, because of the forests surrounding the valley that keep the soils moist.
By the end of July the weather became more stable with warm temperatures and clear skies. The micro biological pressure lessened, leading to excellent berry development and slow ripening which is vital for our Riesling grapes. This unhurried ripening in dry conditions allowed extended the hang time of the grapes. In top parcels we were able to leave grapes on the vines until mid-November providing enormous flavour development.
The vineyards and grapes were in excellent, health condition for picking by harvest time. Picking began in the 3rd week of October and the last bins were brought back to the winery on November 13th. Despite freezing temperatures experienced through the Saar on two nights in early October, making leaves fall too early, the ripeness and sugar concentration continued. The overall sugar levels in the Saar parcels were even higher than in the Mosel vineyards. 2009 seems to be a “Saar Vintage”. Even in the non Grand Cru parcels the grapes were all very ripe, well developed and had a fantastic flavour. Our Ockfener Bockstein vineyard crowned the 2009 vintage with a Trockenbeerenauslese of highest concentration, and an exceptional Eiswein picked on December 19th at a temperature of -15 C. with a sugar concentration of 57 Brix.
The Wines
The wines of 2009 have elegance, expression and power. The minerality is almost sparkling. The acidity is ripe but still crisp. The flavours are complex, ripe and well developed. These wines promise to be the most age-worthy of the decade.
All Vintages in the past that ended with a “9” are known as great vintages such as 39, 49, 59, 69, 79, 89, and 99. We are certain that 2009 continues this tradition of greatness.
