"Wilhelm Weil presented a stunning 2023 vintage–hair-raising even. The dry Rieslings are utterly clear and brilliant while brimming with fruit. The off-dry and sweet wines have electric, spectacular acidity, giving them even more definition than usual, heightening every nuance of flavor and assuring longevity." - Anne Krebiehl MW, Vinous
Weingut Robert Weil is one of the top three undisputed reference-points for the Rheingau, and we're not surprised to see them turn in some of the most acclaimed wines of the vintage throughout their entire range. Of course the entry-level wines are top-tier performers in their categories, as seen in the 94-point Rheingau Kabinett and the JS92 Estate Trocken.
The Grafenberg vineyard is the crown jewel and easily one of the greatest Riesling sites in the world, with deep slate soils over mica-quarz phyllite bedrock, so the wines are always inclined toward exuberant fruit and firm mineral backbone, along with generous yet precise textures, no matter the style being made. In 2023, the site shines on every level, starting with the 98-point 2023 Grafenberg Grosses Gewächs, which Wine Advocate's Stephan Reinhardt calls "a dense, powerful and majestic yet also finessed Gräfenberg" that exemplifies how majestic dry Riesling can be. Moving to the prädikat wines, the double 97-point 2023 Grafenberg Spätlese is "simply exquisite, simply beautiful, thrilling and oh so pure ... a glorious wine" per Anne Krebiehl, while Stuart Pigott dubs it "a giant Spätlese, but in terms of depth and expression, not in sheer volume or density."
The 2023 Auslesen are on another level altogether and represent some of the best wines of the vintage, anywhere. The double 99-point 2023 Grafenberg Auslese is "a glorious wine of utter purity, brilliance, concentration and incredible lightness ... a Riesling that will outlast us all." The ne plus ultra, however, is the 2023 Grafenberg Trockenbeerenauslese. It will undoubtedly stand as a generational wine at the pinnacle of its category, with multiple 100-point scores already and near perfection from others. "An elixir of the utmost purity-a superlative," it's a nearly immortal creation, "highly finessed yet not made for this life or the next ... [but] for the future that is not ours anymore," as Reinhardt so poetically puts it.
You don't have to be a German wine fan to understand the specific greatness on offer in this set. If you're a collector of the world's greatest long-term cellar propositions, period, then every one of these spectacular treasures should be on your shortlist.