This was the WOTN. One of the guys said he had decided that it was the color of urine. We then shamelessly teased him that he must be dehydrated and needed to drink more water. Beautiful dark gold in color. Heavy aromas of butter. This was definitely Old World wine. Had a slight amount of petrol on the nose also. Sweet, heavy palate. I would guess that this is slightly older (10-15 years of age on it). Wonderful honey flavors, it was rich and heavy in the mouth. I have never really cared for sweet wine, but I am beginning to realize that apparently I have just not tried the right stuff before.

I'll assume this thread was started with respect to the Spatlese.

Golden colour. Aromas of honey, citrus, petrol, slate, and flint. Medium-bodied with a slightly cloying nature due to limited acidity. Slight sweetness, but not overwhelming. Short finish, ~25-30s with citrus notes. 87 points (06/19/2004).

Is Schloss Johanisberger the same producer as Schloss Reinhartshausen, just in a different locale? I have very little experience with German wines.

Schloss means castle or chateau in German. Schloss Johannisberg and Schloss Rheinhartshausen are different wineries. Until the 1960s, Schloss Johannisberg was the undisputed premier grand cru of the Rheingau with Rheinhartshausen probably classified as a "super second." Both failed to keep up with improvements in quality although Schloss Johannisberg is still generally pretty respectable. The best wineries in the Rheingau right now are (IMHO) Robert Weil, Josef Leitz, Georg Breuer and Franz Künstler.

Schloss Johannisberg is one of the most impressive chateaux I have ever visited. If you are interested, pictures and some description are on my website here. For pictures of Schloss Rheinhartshausen and some text, gohere.

Don't forget August Kesseler for high quality Rheingau wines!

Schloss Rheinhartshausen used to be soooooo goooooood. A friend of mine has a stash of 1983 Spatlesen from Rheinhartshausen that are just lovely!