Dr Loosen has been in the same family for more than 200 years and its present guardian, Ernst Loosen, is one of the great characters of the wine world. He assumed ownership of the estate in 1988 and immediately realised that, with ungrafted vines averaging 70 years of age, in some of Germany's best-rated vineyards, gave him the raw materials to create stunningly intense, world-class wines. To achieve this, he dramatically reduced his crop size and stopped all chemical fertilisation, preferring only moderate use of organic fertilisers. And, most importantly, he turned to gentler cellar practices that allow the wine to develop its full potential with a minimum of handling and technological meddling.

The "Sundial of Wehlen" is one of the greatest vineyards in the Middle Mosel. The soil is almost nothing but broken shards of blue Devonian slate, which gives a lively minerality to the wines. Citrus and white peach flavours predominate when the wines are young, turning to a pure expression of the mineral soil as they age. 100% Riesling from vines of more than 100 years of age. Fermented with indigenous yeast in a 3,000-litre, neutral oak, cask; matured on the full lees for 12 months; no bâtonnage.

Tasted as a cask sample in Wiesbaden in August 2021, the 2020 Wehlener Sonnenuhr GG Alte Reben offers a very intense and beautifully spicy, slatey nose. Rich and intense on the palate, with remarkable freshness and lemon flavours, this is an intense and dense, very salty and persistent Sonnenuhr from ancient vines. Very promising. Date: Sept 2021; Rating: 93-95 Points; Stephan Reinhardt; Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate

Stunning white-fruit and floral aromas are married to a full and very silky body. Concentration and gracefulness all at once. A charmer with more than enough structure. Date: July 2021; Rating: 94-95 Points; Stuart Pigott; James Suckling