Weingut Darting, Huxelrebe Beerenauslese, Forster Schnepfenflug, 2003

Okay, I will admit it - I bought the wine because of its cool name. And because it is cheap for a Beerenauslese. And because it won the "Goldene Kammerpreismünze". And because I had never had a Huxelrebe before.

So, what is it? The grape is almost exclusively grown in Germany and needs lots of attention, but can also produce high quality wines, especially of the sweeter type. And sweet it is, baby!

The colour is an intense gold-yellow which makes it shiny with a little bit of milkiness too. It is very creamy in the glass. The fragrance is intense, honey sugary with a bit of green apple. In the mouth it is sweet, very sweet baby, intense honey with a sweetness that is almost spicy and burns a little on the gum. There is some passion fruit (or fruit gum with passion fruit flavour maybe). The finish is intense too; honey and the slight burning sensation stay with you for quite a while.

This is no hint of sweet, this is a sledge hammer of honey goodness.

The spiciness balances the otherwise overly dominant honey, but this one is a desert wine and will finish you and the evening off. There is nothing after it and a glass or two are enough. I can easily drink a Haart Spätlese on my own, even though it is a full bottle, but not with this one.

Really good as desert wine, otherwise plain overkill.