Blog
Saar's Radical Symphony: 2020 Peter Lauer
Riesling from the steep slopes above Germany's Saar tributary has been known for its delicacy, finesse, and sharp clarity for over 2,000 years. The region is best defined by expressions from its greatest heroes Egon Müller and Hanno Zilliken, two renowned ambassadors who have relied on ample residual sugar, but the young Florian Lauer has a very different perspective on the Saar.
Florian's departure from the Müller and Zilliken mold can be found in two main areas: His wines focus on a dry-tasting style, and the Saar's conventional "lightness of being" is traded for an unapologetic, deeply textural symphony. One with a saturating grip that calls to mind Metallica more so than Mozart.
Increasingly warmer temperatures in the Saar now allow for this dry-tasting style to excel where it where it was once teeth-chattering just a couple of decades ago. Kupp is the greatest vineyard of Ayl, and here, 70-year-old un-grafted vines are tapped for a wine whose name comes from a special portion of the vineyard that Florian's grandfather was enamored with.
I've lost count of the number of times Lauer has been poured for someone not particularly fond of Riesling only to have them change their tune immediately. Florian's wines have a way of flipping preconceived notions upside down in a flash. They are radical yet engage us all with their purity, detail, and site-specificity.
Shop Peter Lauer
Recent Articles
-
Sancerre Royalty: Domaine Vacheron March 24, 2023
-
Electric Slide to Jura: François Rousset-Martin March 23, 2023
-
The Final Release: Chateau Moulin de Tricot Margaux March 22, 2023
-
Côte Chalonnaise Champion: Vincent Dureuil March 21, 2023
-
Chenin Exemplar: 2020 Jacky Blot Release March 20, 2023
Tags
- Abruzzo
- Aged
- Albarino
- Albillo
- Aligote
- Alpine
- Alsace
- Altesse
- Alto Piemonte
- Amarone
- American Oak
- Amphora
- Anjou
- Antonio Galloni
- Apertif
- Arbois
- Arbois-Pupillin
- Argentina
- Austria
- Avize
- Ayl
- Bandol
- Barbaresco
- Barolo
- Beaujolais
- Beaune
- Beer
- Belgium
- Bianco
- Bien Nacido
- Bierzo
- Biodynamic
- Blanc de Blancs
- Bordeaux
- Botti
- Bourgogne
- Bourgueil
- Breze
- Brouilly
- Brunello di Montalcino
- Brut
- Burgundian
- Burgundy
- Cabernet Franc
- Cabernet Sauvignon
- California
- Campania
- Canary Islands
- Cannonau
- Carbonic
- Carema
- Carignan
- Carricante
- Cellar Worthy
- Cerasuolo
- Chablis
- Chambolle Musigny
- Champagne
- Chardonnay
- Charly Foucault
- Chassagne Montrachet
- Chateauneuf du Pape
- Chavignol
- Chehalem Mountains
- Chenin Blanc
- Chianti Classico
- Chinon
- Chiroubles
- Cider
- Cinsault
- Clairette
- Clos
- Columbia Gorge
- Cool Climate
- Coombsville
- Cornas
- Corsica
- Cortese
- Cote Chalonnaise
- Cote de Beaune
- Cote de Brouilly
- cote de nuits
- Cote Rotie
- Coteaux de Dijon
- Cotes des Blancs
- Cotes du Jura
- Cotes du Rhone
- Crozes Hermitage
- Dauvissat
- Destemmed
- Diatomaceous
- Dijon
- Dolcetto
- Dolomites
- Dominique Lafon
- Dry Riesling
- Ecueil
- Eola-Amity Hills
- Eric Asimov
- Etna
- Extra Brut
- Fiano di Avellino
- Fleurie
- Fort Ross-Seaview
- France
- Frappato
- French Alps
- Friuli
- Galicia
- Gamay
- Gang of Four
- Garnacha
- Gattinara
- Germany
- gevrey chambertin
- Giachino
- Gigondas
- Glou Glou
- Good Value
- Gran Reserva
- Grand Cru
- Granite
- Gravel
- Grenache
- Grenache Gris
- Grosser Ring
- Grosses Gewachs
- Grower Champagne
- Haut Medoc
- Haut-Medoc
- Hermitage
- IGT
- Italy
- Jacquere
- Jon Bonne
- José Pastor
- Jura
- Kermit Lynch
- Kimmeridgian Limestone
- Kimmeridgian Soil
- Kupp
- Lambic
- Langhe
- Languedoc
- Late Release
- Le Mesnil
- Left Bank
- Left Bank Bordeaux
- Les Riceys
- Lessona
- Limestone
- Loire
- Loire Valley
- Louis/Dressner
- Low Sulfur
- Macabeau
- Macon
- Madrid
- Malvasia
- Margaux
- Marsannay
- Mascarello
- Mediterranean
- medoc
- Melon de Bourgogne
- Mencia
- Mendocino
- Mercurey
- Merlot
- Meursault
- Minerality
- Mondeuse
- Monopole
- Mont Blanc
- Montagne de Reims
- Montefalco
- Montepulciano
- Monthelie
- Montlouis sur Loire
- Morey-Saint-Denis
- Morgon
- Mosel
- Mourvedre
- Muscadet
- Nahe
- Napa Valley
- Natural Wine
- Neal Rosenthal
- Nebbiolo
- Nerello Mascalese
- Nero d'Avola
- New California
- New Oak
- New Release
- New York Times
- Next Generation
- No Sulfur
- Noble Reduction
- Northen Rhone
- Northern Italy
- Northern Rhone
- Nuits Saint Georges
- Nuits-Saint-Georges
- Oak Knoll District
- Oakville
- Old School
- Old Vines
- Old World
- Orange
- Oregon
- Organic
- Ouille
- Passetoutgrain
- Patagonia
- Penedes
- Pfalz
- Piedmont
- Pineau d'Aunis
- Pinot Noir
- Ploussard
- Pommard
- Portugal
- Poulsard
- Pre-Phylloxera
- Premier Cru
- Priorat
- Provence
- Puligny Montrachet
- Puligny-Montrachet
- Radda
- Rajat Parr
- Raul Perez
- Red
- Regnie
- Reserva
- Reserve
- Rheinhessen
- Rhone
- Rhone Valley
- Rias Baixas
- Ribeira Sacra
- Riesling
- Right Bank
- Rioja
- riserva
- Rose
- Rosso
- Roussillon
- Rully
- Ruwer Valley
- Saar
- Sagrantino
- Saint Aubin
- Saint Bris
- Saint Esteph
- saint joseph
- Sancerre
- Sangiovese
- Sans Soufre
- Santa Barbara
- Santa Barbara County
- Santa Cruz Mountains
- Santa Maria Valley
- Sardinia
- Sashi Moorman
- Saumur
- Saumur-Champigny
- Sauvignon Blanc
- Savagnin
- Savigny les Beaune
- Savoie
- Sciacacarellu
- Semi-Carbonic
- Serine
- Seven Springs Vineyard
- Sicily
- Sierra de Gredos
- Single Vineyard
- Skin Contact
- Sonoma
- Sonoma Coast
- Sour Beer
- Southern France
- Southern Rhone
- Spain
- Sparkling
- St. Helena
- Sta. Rita Hills
- Stainless Steel
- Styria
- Summer
- Syrah
- Tempranillo
- Teroldego
- To Kalon
- Touriga Nacional
- Trebbiano
- Trentino
- Trousseau
- Tuscany
- UC Davis
- Umbria
- US
- USA
- Valle D'Aosta
- Valpolicella
- Value
- Veneto
- Verduno
- Vermentino
- Vermouth
- Verzy
- Vieilles Vignes
- vielles vignes
- Villages
- Vinho Verde
- Vinous
- Viognier
- Vittoria
- Volcanic
- Volnay
- Vom Boden
- Vosne Romanee
- Vosne-Romanee
- Vouvray
- White
- White Burgundy
- Whole Cluster
- Willamette Valley
- Wine Advocate
- Wink Lorch
- Woman Owned
- Woman Winemaker
- Zev Rovine
- Zinfandel