Our considered opinion last night was that, even though it was quite fresh, there is not so much point in keeping the Boxler Brand Rieslings for an inordinate period of time. Find a local Riesling lover and pop them with him/her. Jacques likes Riesling, you could find out if he has any strong views on them (and let me know what he says if he does, please).

Indeed, there are few wines with degree of expressive mineral character that Boxler’s Sommerbergs possess. This is a great intellectual thrill, but the wines also provide a lot of visceral pleasure; they are just throbbing with love. Visiting Boxler with equipe Oxford was one of the best things we have done, many thanks for suggesting it Jeremy!

As an aside, perhaps the best Gewurztraminer I ever had has come from the Brand Grand Cru, here is the note. That hot, intense character that comes from the Brand can work a treat, if made by a winemaker who can knows how to deal with it and doesn’t harvest grapes that have got too roasted. Again, I am not trying to say that such wines are for everyone, but Peter, Dan and I loved that bottle when I popped it.

Back to Boxler Riesling. I got these wines on the equipe Oxford trip to Alsace, I seem to recall the Boxler wine was one-third the cost of the Z-H’s. Price doesn’t matter, of course, if the wine is good enough. I wanted to get some Sommerberg Riesling from Boxler (his Sommerbergs are clearly the Riesling option of choice), but Jeremy suggested I get some different wines to the partner (who was trying to buy up the entire year’s production of the various Sommerberg Rieslings). I followed his advice and got the Brand Rieslings. I don’t regret that purchase for a moment, so many thanks Jeremy, I liked the wines even if you wouldn’t!