Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Spatlese White Capsule
⏳ Drinking Window
2022 - 2035
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Pan-seared freshwater fish like trout with lemon-herb butter, roasted pork loin with a light mustard glaze, or classic German sausages served with sauerkraut.
✨ Technical Specifications
The Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese White Capsule is a masterclass in Mosel precision, crafted by the legendary Markus Molitor. The vineyard itself, 'Sonnenuhr' or sundial, refers to the historic sundial erected in 1842 by Jodocus Prüm to guide vineyard workers. Nestled on incredibly steep slopes of finely weathered blue Devonian slate, this terroir coaxes unparalleled minerality and tension from the Riesling grape. Molitor is famous for his color-coded capsules; the white capsule signifies a dry style. Despite the late-harvest richness of Spätlese-level grapes, this wine is fermented to dryness using indigenous yeasts in large, neutral oak Fuder casks. The result is a dry Riesling of immense depth, marrying ripe stone fruit and citrus notes with a profound, smoky, flint-like minerality and electric 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.