Odinstal Riesling trocken 120 N.N. 2018

From a sandy leased parcel in Friedelsheim, sitting well below the Odinstal elevation, this 2018 leads with a disarmingly exotic nose, pink grapefruit, banana, ripe white peach, and mirabelle tumbling out in an almost tropical rush. What follows on the palate is the real curveball: that lush fruit gives way to a winter squash earthiness, caraway bite, smoky black tea, and a salty, almost animal edge that calls Alsace to mind more than the Pfalz. The texture is glossy and waxy throughout, lending a richness that amplifies the oddity of those herbal and saline notes. Then the finish pivots again, fresh grapefruit surges through, juicy and focused, while the vegetable and savory elements linger in the background rather than disappearing. It's a wine that keeps shifting shape in the glass. Worth noting: the evident malolactic influence here doesn't dull the wine's vitality, a reminder that 2018 musts were already low in malic acid to begin with.