Egon Muller : Riesling Scharzhofberger Auslese 2018

Tasting characteristics and advice for Egon Müller's Riesling Scharzhofberger Auslese 2018

Tasting

Color
The color shows a pale to medium straw yellow hue, typical of Rieslings of this quality and vintage.

Nose
The nose is fresh, pure, intense, and concentrated, with pronounced mineral notes reminiscent of broken slate and wet stones. Citrus nuances—especially grapefruit and lemon zest—intertwine with aromas of honey and beeswax. With aeration, the bouquet evolves toward toasted almond and apricot crumble notes, revealing the subtle influence of noble rot.

Palate
On the palate, this white wine is generous, highly elegant, and refined, ideally balanced with a saline, crystalline character. The palate reveals concentrated yet precise and graceful fruit, with notes of citrus, pineapple, and apricot, underpinned by finely granular minerals. Despite substantial richness, the natural acidity prevents any heaviness and creates remarkable mineral tension. The texture is rich and substantial while retaining an ethereal quality characteristic of great Saar Rieslings. The finish lingers at length—complex, structured, intense, and opulent—with a persistent mineral presence that frames the residual sweetness.

Food and wine pairings
This wine pairs beautifully with aged hard cheeses such as mature Comté or Gruyère, whose mineral salinity balances the wine’s sweetness. Goat cheeses, with their mineral character and gentle tang, also make excellent companions. For desserts, opt for green-fruit tarts such as apple, pear, or citrus, as well as strawberry-based desserts or candied citrus that echo the wine’s botrytis notes. Fresh exotic fruits—especially pineapple—create surprising matches thanks to their natural acidity. For bolder pairings, this wine can accompany spicy Asian, Mexican, or Peruvian cuisines, where its slight sweetness tempers the heat while its acidity responds to the dishes’ citrus components.

Serving and cellaring
This Riesling Scharzhofberger Auslese 2018 can be enjoyed now but will continue to develop finesse and complexity through at least 2050.

A concentrated Mosel Riesling of beautiful elegance

The estate
Weingut Egon Müller is one of the most prestigious wine estates in the world. Founded in 1797 following the acquisition of the Scharzhof estate by Jean-Jacques Koch, it is now led by Egon Müller IV, the sixth generation of family ownership. Located in the Saar Valley in Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, the estate spans around 8.5 hectares and stands out for its century-old ungrafted vines dating from 1880 to 1900, its extremely low yields, and its absolute commitment to expressing terroir. The only German member of the Primum Familiae Vini organization, Egon Müller embodies Riesling excellence through a philosophy in which wine quality is born one hundred percent in the vineyard.

The vineyard
This German wine comes from vines in the village of Wiltingen, in the heart of the Saar. The slate soils, typical of the region, give the wine its signature minerality. The estate strives to express the unique terroir of these parcels through meticulous viticulture—without chemical fertilizers, herbicides, or insecticides—combined with intensive plowing and exclusively hand harvesting.

The vintage
The 2018 vintage in the Mosel was exceptional, marked by warm, dry conditions that produced an abundant crop of healthy, high-quality grapes. The warmth throughout the growing season, particularly in August and September, encouraged rapid ripening and flavor concentration. The season proved especially favorable for late-harvest and botrytized wines. At Egon Müller, harvest began on October 16, 2018, with yields described as good. The quality of the noble-rot-affected berries proved outstanding, while healthy berries also began to shrivel in the warm, dry conditions, creating ideal circumstances for producing exceptional wines.

Winemaking and aging
The grapes for this 2018 Wiltingen wine are pressed in a vertical press without skin contact, a traditional Mosel practice that preserves the grape variety’s delicate floral and mineral traits. The must ferments exclusively with indigenous yeasts naturally present on the grape skins and in the cellar, reflecting confidence in the quality of the fruit and respect for the estate’s natural microbial terroir. Fermentation and aging take place in large oak casks of around one thousand liters, traditional vessels often forty years old or more, providing minimal oak influence and allowing the wine to age on fine lees without any aggressively oaky character. This non-interventionist approach in the cellar is a deliberate aesthetic choice aligned with the estate’s philosophy centered on terroir expression.

Grape variety
100% Riesling