A Riesling, a good conversation, and the right glass

What does it take for a good evening? Not much, really: a good conversation among friends and a nice bottle of Riesling. This time, reaching into the wine fridge led me to the Mosel, to the Clemens Busch winery and a Riesling Marienburg 2023.

Riesling Marienburg 2023 by Clemens Busch

Even when opening it and taking the first taste, it was clear to me: This wine needs space. So away from the classic Riesling glass and towards a larger glass. The options were the Riedel Fatto a Mano Burgundy glass and the Josephinenhütte No. 3.

Which glass for Riesling? Riedel or Josephinenhütte

In the end, the Riedel prevailed for me that evening. The larger volume and additional air simply gave the young Riesling more room. With some time in the glass, it opened up more and more, showing how much potential it held.

Clemens Busch Riesling Marienburg 2023 in the glass

On the nose and palate, notes of Mirabelle plum and delicate citrus fruits emerged, along with herbs, a slightly smoky note, and above all, that wonderful, for me so typical, minerality that makes a good Mosel Riesling incredibly exciting.

Despite its youth, the wine offered immense drinking pleasure for us. Precise and mineral, yet so pleasant that the bottle accompanied the conversation without pushing itself into the foreground.

A Mosel Riesling for a good evening

And these are exactly the kind of wines I love: wines you can talk about, but don't have to. They are simply there, developing further in the glass throughout the evening, and at some point, they make you wonder why the bottle is already empty again.

"A good friend, a good conversation, and a bottle of Riesling from the Mosel – sometimes you really don't need more." - Hannes Schreiner