Franz Josef Eifel

04 November 2017

Moving on south from Piesport, the Mosel river takes a sharp bend around Trittenhem. A city that houses a dozen of great wineries and many of them bear the name Eifel. One of them is Franz Josef Eifel who leads the family winery as 4th generation. Eifel brings out his elegant Rieslings from vineyards around Trittenheim called Trittenheimer Altärchen, Trittenheimer Apotheke and Neumagener Rosengärtchen.

Franz Josef Eifel took over from his father in 1985 and in this area Riesling is king. Which is why only a small part of the production comes from Weißburgunder. The annual production is around 30.000 bottles. The winery is organic and like most in the area, the fermentation is spontaneous.

We came by earlier this year for a tasting and a chat about the wines.

2016 Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling Kabinett trocken
87	Minerals and light fruit in the nose. Flavour was namely mineral, with lemon and lime. Finished dry.

2016 Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling Su wie frieja trocken
89	Succulent peach and lime in the nose. Flavour was fruit forward with peach, lime, and minerals. Finished dry

2016 Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling trocken Alte Reben
88	Clean aroma with elegant peach and white flowers. Flavour had delicate lime and peach. Minerals gave it a fine texture.

2016 Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling Sonnenfels trocken
88	Exotic fruit in the nose and minerals giving it a nice texture. Flavour was fruity with peach and lime supplemented by lime stone. Good longevity in the flavour.

2016 Trittenheimer Altärchen Riesling Kabinett
87	Hints of yeast in the nose followed by lime and white flowers. Flavour was crisp with white peach, melon, and floral hints. Good texture.

2016 Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling Jungheld Spätlese feinherb
90	Pungent peach and lime in the nose. Flavour was fruit forward with ripe peach, mandarin, and minerals. Finished off dry.

2016 Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling die große Leidenschaft Auslese feinherb
90	Powerful exotic fruit in the nose with complimenting botrytis. Flavour had plenty of overripe peach and cantaloupe with hint of botrytis. Lingering honey towards the end.

2015 Trittenheimer Altärchen Riesling Kabinett feinherb
88	Yeast in the nose. Flavour had yeast, petrol, and hints of exotic fruit. Need time in the cellar to shine.

2016 Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling Spätlese Alte Reben
89	Yeasty aroma. Flavour had good deep exotic fruit which featured overripe peach, honey melon, and lime. Good minerality.

2016 Trittenheimer Apotheke Riesling Goldstückchen Spätlese
93	Overripe peach, honey and melon in the nose. Flavour had deep overripe peach, cantaloupe, mandarin, and honey. Long complex finish. Lovely!

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