Haag/Fritz Brauneberger Riesling Feinherb Tradition 2018

92 points David Schildknecht (Vinous): "This bottling, sourced overwhelmingly from the Juffer, features scents and juicy palate abundance of apple and lime, along with pleasantly earthy, vegetal hints of summer squash and a nod in the direction of tropicality and overripeness via a hint of papaya. The contrast between gloss and brightness, high ripeness but also earthiness and subtly green shadings, proves in no way awkward but indeed quite productive. The wine’s barely detectable but supportive sweetness has not inhibited transparency to stony, alkaline and saline nuances on a genuinely refreshing as well as long-lasting finish. While this bottling has long been referred to as feinherb and that word still appears in minuscule print on the wine’s descriptive label, Haag recognized that for the balance achieved here with a mere 14 grams of residual sugar, the designation feinherb is likely to be misunderstood... In lieu of feinherb, “Tradition” has instead been prominently inscribed on the presentation label as a means of signaling a balance that would simply have been understood in a Mosel Riesling from half a century ago. Drink: 2020-2030. (Nov 2020)"

92 points Stuart Pigott (JamesSuckling.com): "This has flinty aromas with wild herbs and fresh stone fruit. The palate has very attractive acidity and fresh white peaches and limes. Drink now. Screw cap. (12/16/19)"

90-92 points Stephan Reinhardt (Wine Advocate): "Tasted from cask, the 2018 Brauneberger Riesling Tradition is highly refined, fresh and well-articulated in its crunchy, flinty slate perfume. Lush and salty-piquant on the silky-textured palate, this is a light to medium-bodied, firmly structured but filigreed and delicate Brauneberger with a long, stimulatingly fresh finish. Gorgeous but still young. Tasted at the end of March 2019. To be bottled in mid-April 2019. Drink: 2020-2040. (Aug 2020)"

91 points John Gilman (View From the Cellar): As I mentioned last spring, the Riesling “Tradition” bottling falls between Kabinett and Spätlese in must weight and was around fifteen grams per liter of residual sugar. The wine was lovely as a sample just before bottling last March and is still quite lovely a fifteen months later. It offers up a fine nose of lime, gooseberry, orange peel, slate, a nice touch of Brauneberg botanicals and a smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is bright, fullish and complex, with a lovely core, fine mineral drive and bounce and a long, complex and very nicely balanced finish. My only complaint post-bottling is that the backend textural sophistication it showed out of cask has been lost a bit with the screwcap, but that is the nature of the closure. Now, it is just a bit pinched compared to last spring, but all in all, this remains a beautifully made wine and a fine value. I know this is “just” an entry level bottling, but it is a shame it did not receive a natural cork, as absolutely nothing then would have been sacrificed to its closure. 2020-2040. (Jul/Aug 2020)"

90 points Mosel Fine Wines: "AP: 04 19. The 2018er Brauneberger Riesling Tradition (labelled as Feinherb on the back label) comes exclusively from the main Brauneberger hill (Juffer and Juffer-Sonnenuhr) and stopped its fermentation at 15 g/l of residual sugar. It offers a still slightly reduced nose made of pear, greengage, cassis, Provence herbs and smoke. The wine is nicely playful and beautifully balanced on the just off-dry yet still tart palate. It leaves a nice feel of herbs, minerals and orchard fruits in the long and comparatively focused finish. 2021-2033. (Aug 2019)"