Dr. Loosen

With a family heritage dating back over 200 years, Dr. Loosen Winery is one of the most prestigious and well known wineries of Germany. When Ernst Loosen took over in 1988, he soon realized he had ungrafted vines that were 50-60 years old with the capability of producing high class white wines. Riesling is the sole grape variety planted throughout all of Dr. Loosen vineyards, and it is made in a variety of different styles. For the drier, Kabinett, style of wines the grapes are picked earlier in the season where as the Spatlese and Auslese wines utilize grapes that are given a bit more time to develop. These styles of Dr. Loosen wine offer sweeter notes of honeysuckle and apricot according to our Dr. Loosen reviews. Dr. Loosen caters to the widespread consumer needs with an entry level value Riesling in their Dr. L brand, as well as the serious wine collector with their four-acre Erdener Prälat vineyard producing some of the best Auslese Riesling in the Mosel Valley. They have also formed a collaboration with Washington State’s Chateau Ste. Michelle to produce the Eroica Riesling. Our Dr. Loosen ratings below provide more information on these wines.

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Dr. Loosen 2006 Erdener Prälat Auslese Riesling (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer)

Editors' Choice

Price $75

Wow. This gorgeous dessert-style auslese explodes from the glass in a cavalcade of sweet fruit and spice. Honeyed peaches and dried apricots are most prominent, but shadings of cinnamon and allspice give complexity, while crisp acids provide impeccable balance on the long finish. Delicious now, this wine should easily evolve for up to 40 years. — J.C. (12/15/2008)

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Dr. Loosen 2006 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Trockenbeerenauslese Goldkap Riesling (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer)

Editors' Choice
Online Exclusive

Price $49

Bottling a TBA in this format makes great sense--it allows the tiny productions to be spread around and made more affordable. This is rich, sweet and superintense, with flavors of boiled down marmalade and honey that finish long, long, long. In this size bottle, opt for drinking it young versus extended cellaring. — J.C. (4/1/2010)

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Dr. Loosen 2005 Erdener Prälat Auslese Goldkapsel Riesling (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer)

Cellar Selection

Price $55

Unlike many botrytis-affected wines, this wine retains a strong sense of minerality, with oily aromas that remain strong amid the swirl of dried apricot and poached pear scents. Sweet and viscous, but beautifully balanced by lively acidity and a stony core. Long and mouthwatering on the finish — J.C. (2/1/2007)

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Dr. Loosen 2005 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Goldkapsel Riesling (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer)

Editors' Choice

Price $36

A magnificent auslese, featuring plenty of botrytis character, but also pronounced wet-slate aromas. Sweet flavors of dried apples and honey are balanced by lively citrus notes and underlying minerality. Despite being rich and viscous, it doesn’t come across as heavy; instead it ends long and exquisite balanced. — J.C. (2/1/2007)

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Dr. Loosen 2001 Erdener Treppchen Eiswein Riesling (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer)

Price $200

Dr. Loosen is one of the great estates of Germany, able to produce wonderfully expressive wines. Here is a hugely sweet wine, delicate and fresh, with flavors of maple syrup and mangoes. Enormously complex wine in flavor, but there is nothing—a mere 6.5%—in alcohol. —R.V. — R.V. (3/1/2003)

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Dr. Loosen 2005 Ürziger Würzgarten Beerenauslese Riesling (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer)

Cellar Selection

Price $110

Loosen excelled in 2005, and this beerenauslese is no exception. Brilliantly pure scents of pineapple and honey zoom from the glass, then turn lush and voluptuous on the palate, adding alluring hints of peaches and baked apple. Rich and viscous, it lingers on the finish like wildflower honey. — J.C. (10/1/2007)

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Dr. Loosen 2009 Urziger Wurzgarten Auslese Riesling (Mosel)

Online Exclusive

Price $64

A terrific auslese, sweet but balanced near perfectly by lime-like acids. It’s stony yet honeyed, concentrated yet somehow light on its feet. Then it’s bright, fresh and full of juicy citrus fruit on the finish. — J.C. (3/1/2012)

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Dr. Loosen 2007 Eiswein Riesling (Mosel-Saar-Ruwer)

Editors' Choice
Online Exclusive

Price $23

A relative bargain in the stratospheric world of icewine, Loosen's 2007 boasts amazingly pure fruit essences resembling candied pineapple, peach, fruit cocktail and even some red-berry notes. It's plump in the mouth but not oversized, with a long, mouthwatering finish. — J.C. (4/1/2010)

Most Reviewed Designations

Bernkasteler Lay Kabinett Blue Slate Kabinett Erdener Prälat Auslese Erdener Treppchen Auslese Erdener Treppchen Kabinett Erdener Treppchen Spätlese Graacher Himmelreich Spätlese Urziger Wurzgarten Auslese Urziger Wurzgarten Spätlese Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Wehlener Sonnenuhr Kabinett Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spätlese

Most Reviewed Varietals

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