Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Spatlese
⏳ Drinking Window
2023 - 2045
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Spicy Asian dishes such as Thai curry, roasted pork belly with fruit glaze, and mature blue cheeses
✨ Technical Specifications
Markus Molitor's Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Riesling Spatlese is a breathtaking expression of the Middle Mosel's dramatic, slate-strewn slopes. The Zeltinger Sonnenuhr (Sundial) vineyard, named after the historic sundial erected in its midst in 1842, features incredibly steep gradients and highly weathered Devonian slate soils. Molitor, known for his uncompromising pursuit of perfection, harvests these 100% Riesling grapes entirely by hand through multiple meticulous selections. The wine is fermented slowly with wild yeasts in large, neutral oak casks, preserving the crystalline purity of the fruit. This Spatlese captures a brilliant tension between rich, late-harvest stone fruits—like white peach and apricot—and an electric, slate-driven acidity that dances on the palate, showcasing the legendary complexity of Mosel Riesling.
🍾 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.