2002 Riesling Spätlese, Nackenheim Rothenberg, Gunderloch

From the steep, sun-drenched Rothenberg vineyard on the Rhine’s famous Roter Hang (Red Slope), this 2002 Spätlese shows exactly why Gunderloch has long been a name whispered with admiration among Riesling lovers. The nose is a kaleidoscope of ripe yellow peach, candied lime, honey and crushed stone, all wrapped in a gentle patina of age. The palate is seamless with layers of juicy stone fruit and citrus cream balanced by racy acidity and that unmistakable saline minerality of red slate. Two decades on, the sweetness has softened into a graceful glow, leaving a finish that lingers like sunlight on water.

For when: you want to taste time itself.
Pairs with: roast duck with orange, aged Comté, or nothing but quiet company.
If this wine were: a film, it’d be In the Mood for Love - elegant, slow-burning, and utterly timeless.

Weingut Gunderloch, founded in 1890 by banker Carl Gunderloch, is a jewel of the Rheinhessen and a pioneer of the region’s resurgence. Based in Nackenheim, the estate owns prized parcels on the Rothenberg, the steepest and most celebrated section of the Roter Hang, where iron-rich red slate gives Riesling its hallmark spice and mineral tension. Under generations of the Hasselbach family, Gunderloch has honed a style that marries precision with generosity, pure fruit, vivid acidity, and a natural harmony that allows each wine to age gracefully for decades. The 2002 vintage, cool and classical, delivered wines of remarkable balance and longevity, and this Spätlese stands as a luminous testament to that legacy.