Points | International Wine Cellar , November/December 2000

Pungent and nose‑wrinkling, with lees, wood spice and even a whiff of cigar smoke about it. Yellow plum, cherry preserve, white raisin and subtly caramelized peach in the mouth. Phenomenally thick and rich, yet somehow effortlessly light. Endless variations on pit fruits, white raisin and honey in the finish. This is a wine you'll never taste. Why? Because it not a wine. "I thought about bottling this stuff under that name, ‘Kein Wein’ (no wine)," quips Kracher. This superconcentrated essence could not reach the legal minimum of 5% alcohol requisite for wine. It will be blended with a small amount of another exceptional batch of chardonnay (naturally a TBA) to nudge it over the threshold.