Region: Mosel
Sub Region: Graach – Graacher Himmelreich
Variety: Riesling
Country: Germany
Vintage: 2024
The Wine
Graacher Himmelreich sits immediately beside Wehlener Sonnenuhr but produces a distinctly different expression of Mosel Riesling. The vineyard is somewhat less severe in gradient, with deeper soils that hold water particularly well. Its slate soils and south-west exposure produce wines with pronounced mineral character, but Himmelreich typically shows more citrus, herbs and raciness than the rounder, more stone-fruited Wehlener Sonnenuhr.
At Auslese level, the 2024 is about intensity rather than simple sweetness. The fruit was picked later and at greater ripeness, but importantly there was almost no botrytis in the wine. That keeps the profile exceptionally pure: ripe fruit and greater concentration without the honeyed or exotic character noble rot can bring.
The growing season plays directly into that style. A cooler September allowed Prüm to slow the harvest and make repeated passes through the vineyards, waiting for Auslese-level ripeness while retaining the vintage’s naturally bright acidity. The result is richer and more textural than the estate’s Kabinett and Spätlese wines, but still strikingly linear.
Graacher Himmelreich shows its personality clearly here: Amalfi lemon, grapefruit, pomelo, green tangerine and white peach, layered with herbs, flint and salty slate. There is sweetness, certainly, but it is wrapped around electric acidity and a slightly bitter citrus-mineral finish that leaves the wine remarkably refreshing.
Cellared Says
Forget the idea that Auslese automatically means dessert wine. This is far more interesting than that. The extra ripeness gives it concentration and length, but Himmelreich’s citrus and herbal character keeps everything racy and alive. For me, this is the more energetic and linear of the two 2024 Auslesen—an extraordinary wine for the cellar and remarkably versatile at the table.
Reviews
“The 2024 has gorgeous linearity and such a tingling, sherbet-like insistence. It is simply wonderful and so utterly balanced.”
97 Points – Anne Krebiehl MW, Vinous
“Very bright and racy… Long, energetic, herbal finish with fascinating grapefruit bitterness and salty minerality.”
95 Points – James Suckling
“Pure and flinty… concentrated yet refined and elegant, mouth-filling and textured.”
94 Points – Stephan Reinhardt, The Wine Advocate
Region: Mosel
Sub Region: Graach – Graacher Himmelreich
Variety: Riesling
Country: Germany
Vintage: 2024
The Wine
Graacher Himmelreich sits immediately beside Wehlener Sonnenuhr but produces a distinctly different expression of Mosel Riesling. The vineyard is somewhat less severe in gradient, with deeper soils that hold water particularly well. Its slate soils and south-west exposure produce wines with pronounced mineral character, but Himmelreich typically shows more citrus, herbs and raciness than the rounder, more stone-fruited Wehlener Sonnenuhr.
At Auslese level, the 2024 is about intensity rather than simple sweetness. The fruit was picked later and at greater ripeness, but importantly there was almost no botrytis in the wine. That keeps the profile exceptionally pure: ripe fruit and greater concentration without the honeyed or exotic character noble rot can bring.
The growing season plays directly into that style. A cooler September allowed Prüm to slow the harvest and make repeated passes through the vineyards, waiting for Auslese-level ripeness while retaining the vintage’s naturally bright acidity. The result is richer and more textural than the estate’s Kabinett and Spätlese wines, but still strikingly linear.
Graacher Himmelreich shows its personality clearly here: Amalfi lemon, grapefruit, pomelo, green tangerine and white peach, layered with herbs, flint and salty slate. There is sweetness, certainly, but it is wrapped around electric acidity and a slightly bitter citrus-mineral finish that leaves the wine remarkably refreshing.
Cellared Says
Forget the idea that Auslese automatically means dessert wine. This is far more interesting than that. The extra ripeness gives it concentration and length, but Himmelreich’s citrus and herbal character keeps everything racy and alive. For me, this is the more energetic and linear of the two 2024 Auslesen—an extraordinary wine for the cellar and remarkably versatile at the table.
Reviews
“The 2024 has gorgeous linearity and such a tingling, sherbet-like insistence. It is simply wonderful and so utterly balanced.”
97 Points – Anne Krebiehl MW, Vinous
“Very bright and racy… Long, energetic, herbal finish with fascinating grapefruit bitterness and salty minerality.”
95 Points – James Suckling
“Pure and flinty… concentrated yet refined and elegant, mouth-filling and textured.”
94 Points – Stephan Reinhardt, The Wine Advocate
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