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Schafer-Frohlich Gold Capsule: Can a Luxury be a Necessity?

Posted by Stephen Bitterolf on December 30, 2010

Tim's Most Ethereal and Elegant GK to Date
2009 Schäfer-Fröhlich Felseneck Spätlese GK
Rare German Collectible - Lowest Pricing Ever!

The GK is Schäfer-Fröhlich's top Spätlese - a rare bottle we introduced to the U.S. market almost three years ago.

Can a luxury be a necessity? (Because this bottle is both.)

Tim Fröhlich's Felseneck Spätlese Gold Capsule (GK) is one of Germany's greatest Spätlese, year in and year out - it's that simple.

This is most decidedly NOT the regular Spätlese bottling (click here to learn more about Gold Capsules!), and the 09 takes this benchmark to a whole new level.

What's more is that at as low as $42.50, this is the sharpest price on Tim's GK we've *ever* been able to offer. Call it a luxury bottle for all its beauty and the sheer pleasure it offers, and call it a necessity for the cellar of anyone who takes Riesling seriously - we've priced 3-packs for just this reason.

Tim's Felseneck Spätlese GK deserves its place among the legends of German wine - Egon Müller's Scharzhofberger, J.J. Prüm's Wehlener Sonnenuhr or Helmut Dönnhoff's Hermannshöhle, to name but a few.

What these bottles all display is a certain "perfect completeness." By which I mean that each of these delivers everything, from fruit to mineral, in perfect proportions with perfect delivery and grace.

True to form, the GK (picked only a few days later than the regular Felseneck Spätlese) is distinguished not so much by an obvious ripeness or unctuous weight, but by the specific parcel in the Felseneck vineyard that it comes from - a plot that, as Tim says, always gives "something more."

And what's that? To me, it's an expression of more breadth and depth than the regular bottling - a more complete, intriguing conversation, all the while maintaining beautiful purity and clarity.

Indeed, 2009 was a vintage of crystal clear fruit, and the Felseneck GK straddles the line between the deep, awe-inspiring monuments of 2007 and the agile, feathery Rieslings of 2008.

I'd say that the big news in 09 for this wine and Schäfer-Fröhlich in general is not that this bottling is great or that Tim is making some of the most exciting Rieslings in Germany (this much has been clear for years); it's that his style is evolving, taking the extraordinary thrust, the razor-sharp edges the house is known for and dousing it with more elegance, a more smoothly rounded profile - these 09s are more ethereal than they have ever been before.

As I taste more 09s, I become more and more certain that though this vintage was very, very well received, I still think it's been undervalued. There is a clarity to the fruit; the best have such rigid structures - I can't help but think of 2001 in the Mosel - and I like thinking about those wines! (Read more about 2009 in Germany here.)

While the pricing is lower than ever, the quantities are not as plentiful as they were in 2007. The 09 vintage was a much shorter one, so today, while the pricing for a wine of this quality, rarity and ageability is as outrageous as it is, I suggest buying as deep as you can. Our parcel is sure to go quickly, so give us your dream order, and we'll confirm you on as much as we can by end of day.

To order, email us at offers@crushwineco.comor call the store at
(212) 980-9463.

Stephen Bitterolf
Wine Director
Crush Wine & Spirits






2009 Schäfer-Fröhlich
Bockenauer Felseneck Spätlese Gold Capsule

Special Email Bottle Price: $44.95 SOLD OUT!
Compare at up to $54

Special Email 3-Pack Price: $127.50 ($42.50/btl) SOLD OUT!


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