Bencze Birtok, Aries 'Dancing on the Flor' 2021

Place: Badacsony, Hungary

Grape: Riesling

Vibe: Natural + Tasty

This is one of the better liquids I've had the pleasure of tasting in recent memory. Harvested a little later than normal in the Aries phase of the lunar calendar, before a slow and gentle whole-bunch press. It then spends four and a half years in amphora that developed a layer of flor. Unimaginably complex.

Classic Riesling aromatics up front, all jasmine and citrus blossom before a savoury, herbal thing washes over us. The palate feels almost soft and creamy but is then cut through by lashings of acid, and you're left salivating with a salty, persistent and very mineral finish. I can't say I've had anything else like it. It's confusing in the best possible sense, I didn't think Riesling could taste like this, and I certainly didn't think it would be this GOOD. ABV: 11.5%