MARCEL DEISS 2004 ALTENBERG DE BERGHEIM

WINE ADVOCATE 94 POINTS - "From a Grand Cru-rated and traditionally great Gewurztraminer site which Deiss has here densely-planted with the entire range of Alsace cepages, his 2004 Altenberg de Bergheim is redolent of honey, lily, baking spices, orange liqueur and citrus zest. With tremendous polish, richness and honeyed botrytis character on the palate, this has an underlying density suggestive of minerality and presumably going far to explain why nearly three-digit residual sugar results in a wine that is certainly sweet but not overbearingly so. Candied citrus, orange liqueur and marmalade, peach preserves, nut paste, honey, and vanilla, along with doughy richness and buttery texture give this wine a patisserie character – if one simply imagines dustings of chalk dust instead of flour. It finishes with remarkable lift and elegance for a wine of such sheer richness."