Joh. Jos. Prum Graacher Himmelreich Riesling Kabinett 2021

The cool, late-picked 2021 vintage was made for Kabinett, the lightest rung of the Prädikat ladder, where delicate sweetness rides on brisk acidity at very low alcohol. Joh. Jos. Prüm, the benchmark Wehlen estate founded in 1911 and now guided by Dr. Katharina Prüm, farms Graacher Himmelreich on steep weathered Devonian slate whose deeper soils and pockets of blue slate yield the raciest, most citrus-driven wines in the cellar. White peach, lime, and yuzu run over a base of smoky slate, with herbs and white flowers filling out an incisive, energetic palate and a fresh, grippy finish. These wines are famously slow to evolve; this one will still be young in a decade. Kabinett the way the Mosel means it.