Schlumberger Kitterle Clos St Leger Riesling Grand Cru - 2017

The color is golden yellow with light, intense reflections. The disk is bright, limpid, and transparent. The wine is youthful. The nose is frank, pleasant, and intense. Citrus aromas dominate, with exotic lemon, pineapple, and white flowers. Aeration amplifies these scents, revealing bergamot, citron, spices, ginger and a hint of smoky mineral, gas and white truffle. The fragrance profile combines subtlety and nobility. All combine harmoniously to reveal a new aspect of Grand Cru Kitterlé.

The palate is fleshy, with a full-bodied alcoholic base. The mid-palate is strict and lively, with a hint of perlage. The same range of aromas as on the nose, with citrus fruit, white flowers, spices, ginger and the mineral smokiness of gas and white truffle. There’s a hint of bitterness. The finish has great length, 13-14 caudalies, as well as frank vivacity and a fine, persistent bitterness. The balance is masterful! The initial over-ripeness of the botrytis is admirably tempered by the definition of the terroir. The range of aromas is already accessible, much to our delight.

M. Pascal Leonetti: “Best Sommelier of France 2006” April 2022

Wine Advocate 92+: From a very early, rather cold vintage according to Séverine Schlumberger, the 2017 Riesling Le Clos Saint-Léger Grand Cru Monopole offers a clear, fresh, pure, subtle and finely mineral or stony bouquet representing the volcanic terroir of the Grand Cru Kitterlé. The wine shows very delicate and elegant Riesling fruit intermingled with crunchy stone aromas. On the palate, this is a pure, dense, straight and textural Riesling with good and refreshing phenolic grip that gives persistent tension. The structured finish is intense and long. This is an excellent wine from Schlumberger. 13.77% alcohol. Tasted in Hamburg's Winebank in October 2023. The wine was released at ProWein in Düsseldorf, Germany, in March 2024.

James Suckling 97: Lovely maturing nose of ripe peach and candied citrus peel with toasty, herbal and licorice complexity. Rich and generous, but impeccably balanced on the silky palate, where the mineral freshness builds steadily as the finish extends and extends. The first vintage of this wine. Drink or hold.

Wine Enthusiast 93: This dry, broad-shouldered version has developed nicely over the years, revealing ample minerality with finely layered flavors of papaya, melon, star fruit and ground white pepper. The finish is long and inviting. It is powerful and heavy, but driven by piercing acidity that should help this go the distance.