Urziger Wurzgarten Riesling Spatlese Goldkapsel
⏳ Drinking Window
2022 - 2038
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Spicy Thai or Sichuan cuisine, rich blue cheeses such as Roquefort, and classic roasted duck with fruit-based reduction sauces.
✨ Technical Specifications
Hailing from the legendary, dizzyingly steep slopes of the Urziger Wurzgarten—the 'spice garden' of the Mosel—this Riesling showcases one of Germany's most unique terroirs. Unlike the blue slate dominant in much of the region, the Wurzgarten is defined by iron-rich, red volcanic soil and weathered slate, which imparts a signature exotic, wild-spice character to the grapes. Master winemaker Markus Molitor utilizes traditional, meticulous methods, including hand-harvesting, extremely gentle pressing, and spontaneous fermentation with wild yeasts in large, neutral oak Fuder casks. The 'Goldkapsel' (Gold Capsule) designation signifies an extraordinary selection of noble, late-harvested grapes, resulting in a Spatlese of immense concentration, where luscious tropical fruit sweetness is perfectly balanced by a spine of electric, mineral-driven acidity.
🍾 About the Producer
Founded in 1984 when twenty-year-old Markus Molitor assumed control of his family's winemaking legacy, Weingut Markus Molitor has evolved into an undisputed titan of the Mosel. Based at Haus Klosterberg, Molitor manages over 100 hectares encompassing premier steep-slope crus along both the Middle Mosel and Saar, including Wehlener Sonnenuhr, Ürziger Würzgarten, Erdener Prälat, and Scharzhofberg. Viticulture is strictly manual on precipitous gradients of weathered Devonian blue, red, and grey slate. Molitor pursues an uncompromising philosophy centered on sustainable farming, late selective harvesting, native yeast fermentation, and prolonged aging on fine lees in traditional wooden Fuders carved into subterranean slate cellars. Renowned for its singular capsule coding system—white indicating dry, green denoting feinherb (off-dry), and gold designating noble sweet expressions, often tiered with asterisks—the estate crafts crystalline, hyper-mineral Rieslings of monumental depth and aging potential, alongside site-expressive Pinot Noir and Weissburgunder.
🍇 Grapes
100% Riesling