Vereinigte Hospitien 'Sanctus Jacobus' Trier - Wiltinger braune Kupp Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel 1976

🏛️ The winery: Vereinigte Hospitien 'Sanctus Jacobus'

The roots of the Vereinigte Hospitien go back to Roman times. However, the winery in its current form came about as a result of secularisation under Napoleon: in 1805, several Trier hospitals and institutions were merged into a single foundation by decree of Emperor Napoleon. The name and the distinctive label with St. Jacobus go back to the medieval St. Jacob's Hospital, which was founded in the 13th century and offered shelter to pilgrims on their way to Santiago de Compostela. As early as 1464, the cultivation of Riesling is documented in its account books. Today, the foundation is a public corporation with charitable tasks, the proceeds of which are used to care for the inmates and patients.

Today, the estate cultivates around 40 hectares of vineyards, 70% of which are on steep slopes on weathered slate and mottled sandstone soils. Riesling accounts for around 95% of the vineyards. The best-known sites include the Wiltinger Hölle, the Scharzhofberg, the Wiltinger Braune Kupp, the Trierer Augenscheiner and the Piesporter Goldtröpfchen . The estate is committed to nature-friendly viticulture, selective hand-picking, strict yield limitation and has been a member of the GROSSEN RING VDP for over 100 years.

🍇 The vineyard: Wiltinger Braune Kupp

Wiltinger Braune Kupp is one of the most renowned vineyards on the Saar and is located in the municipality of Wiltingen. The slate soil gives the Rieslings grown here their characteristic minerality, fine acidity structure and high complexity. The Vereinigte Hospitien winery owns shares in this and the neighbouring vineyards, including the Wiltinger Kupp and Wiltinger Hölle. The steep slope is cultivated with painstaking manual labour.

🏷️ The label: Sanctus Jacobus

A special feature of Vereinigte Hospitien is the eye-catching label featuring St Jacobus, the patron saint of Trier's St Jacobus Hospital. It has become a trademark that symbolises the eventful history of the winery and its charitable focus. This label also features the "Goldkapsel" award - a designation for particularly high-quality Auslese wines that was reserved for the best wines of a vintage at the time of bottling.

🍷 Tasting note (Bernd Schulz, 2009)

The Wiltinger Braune Kupp Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel 1976 shows a deep, reddish shimmering golden yellowin the glass - an impressive sign of its advanced age and an indication of its intensive development of maturity.An intense aroma of dried fruit unfolds on the nose , accompanied by fine tertiary notes. On the palate, the wine presents itself with lemon cream and exotic fruit flavours. A hint of clean botrytis brings honey notes to the palate, which is also characterised by a well-preserved sweetness and harmonious acidity. The wine shows excellent maturity and is, according to the 2009 tasting note, "still very animating". The finish is pleasantly tart and long - a classic characteristic of a great, mature Mosel Riesling.

📅 The 1976 vintage

The 1976 vintage is considered excellent to outstandingfor German wine production . After a cool, wet spring, a sudden heatwave ensured that flowering progressed rapidly; the summer was extremely hot and dry, with record temperatures in some cases. These conditions favoured high grape ripeness with pronounced aromas and sufficient acidity, which particularly benefited the Prädikat wines such as this Auslese.

🧐 Producer's note

It is important to mention that the Egon Müller-Scharzhof winery also produced a 1976 Wiltinger Braune Kupp Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel. However, the Vereinigte Hospitien own their own parcels in this vineyard and produce their own, high-quality Rieslings, which are characterised by their independence and charitable background.

💰 Prices and market availability

The 1976 Wiltinger Braune Kupp Riesling Auslese Goldkapsel from Vereinigte Hospitien is an extremely rare collector's wine. At auction, similar wines from the estate, such as the Trockenbeerenauslese (TBA) from the same site and vintage, fetch between £900 and £1,000 per six-pack. The TBA is an even more concentrated and sweeter elevation of the Auslese. Depending on condition, provenance and demand, prices for the normal Auslese are in the three-figure euro range per 0.75 litre bottle.

🍽️ Recommended food accompaniment

In general, mature, noble sweet Rieslings are an excellent accompaniment:

• Foie gras (foie gras): The sweetness and acidity of the wine balance the rich texture.

• Blue cheese: e.g. Roquefort or Bavarian Blue - the contrast between sweetness and salty flavour is fantastic.

• Asian cuisine: Especially sweet and sour dishes (Thai sweet and sour prawns) or curries with coconut milk.

• Fruit-based desserts: apple strudel, peach melba, lemon tart or crème brûlée.

• Mature, mild hard cheese: like a Comté or a mature Gouda.

📦 Storage and drinking maturity

If the wine is still in its original state, it should be stored in a dark, cool (10-14 °C) and humid (60-70 %) environment. Due to its excellent maturity and structure, it is now ready to drink and has reached (or possibly slightly exceeded) its peak. Further, very long storage is conceivable due to the good acid structure, but it is advisable to open the bottle in the next few years so as not to miss the fine tertiary flavours. Particular care should be taken with bottles showing signs of ageing (e.g. capsule damage, slight leaks )- they should be consumed as soon as possible.

To summarise: this is an exceptional, mature Riesling from one of the best sites on the Saar, produced by a traditional winery with a unique history. This Auslese is a testimony to the outstanding quality of the 1976 vintage and today offers a complex, multi-layered pleasure experience. Due to its rarity, it is a coveted collector's item that delights idealists and connoisseurs alike.