Leitz Riesling Rüdesheimer Berg Kaisersteinfels Riesling Kabinett 2016

An unusual Kabinett from Leitz, made from old vines on the highest terraces of Kaisersteinfels, the same site as their Grosses Gewächs but harvested separately, with 24.5 grams of residual sugar left behind and a finished alcohol of just 9.5%. Leitz added a hundred pounds of whole berries to the fermentor (stopping well short of orange wine territory), and fermentation didn't complete until July. The nose, caught soon after bottling, carries some lingering fermentative lift alongside ripe pear, quince, white peach, and an unexpected note of cinnamon. On the palate, the sweetness is modest and well-integrated, silken in texture, with lush fruit giving way to a soothing, lime-edged finish that stays juicy and refreshing. Leitz himself frames this as his way of honoring what Kaisersteinfels does best with residual sugar, pointing to the legendary 2005 as a precedent. A charming, low-alcohol Kabinett worth revisiting as it settles.