Müller-Ruprecht Six-Vintage Saumagen "N" Vertical
2015-2016-2017-2018-2020-2021
includes one bottle of each vintage of Müller-Ruprecht's Saumagen "N" direct from the estate's cellar

A bit of Source Material history.

We first presented the wines of Müller-Ruprecht in the fall of 2020, as part of Source Material's second offer (002!), Keller's "Golden Generation."

It was an offer designed to showcase the next generation of young growers in Germany. For this offer, Keller chose six young wineries and a bottle from each estate to highlight their style.

Müller-Ruprecht was one of the chosen few estates and the wine selected was their top bottling - the wine in this offer - the Saumagen "N." This wine is sourced from a small parcel within the famous Saumagen vineyard called "Nill." It is one of the coolest parts of this storied vineyard, shaded and with fierce winds. Yet this parcel also has more limestone in the soil than nearly any other part of the limestone-driven Saumagen, giving the wine a special, distinctive, cooling minerality.

Müller-Ruprecht's "N" always has a certain energy about it.

While this offer remains one of our most successful offers ever (thus the fact there is no 2019 "N" in this vertical), here we present the rare opportunity to taste a six-vintage vertical of this wine, bookended by two legendary vintages (2015 and 2021).

Yet every bottle tells the story of the vintage and every bottle has been sourced directly from the estate. If you're a serious German-wine dork (or even just beginning your journey), you have probably already come to realize that finding Grand Cru dry Rieslings with age is one of the hardest things to do.

We make it easy at a price that is beyond ridiculous - nearly 30-50% below GGs of a similar cut and depth. The value is obvious, the quantities are very limited.

If the excitement is easy to understand (you just have to taste), the style at Müller-Ruprecht is hard to place exactly. The incisive yet grand GGs of Rebholz are perhaps the easiest comparison. Both estates somehow focus the power of the Pfalz, shape the sunshine-filled landscape into wines of delineation and lift. Yet the Müller-Ruprecht wines are somehow perhaps bouncier - airier? They feel a shade lighter?

The comparison doesn't exactly capture the energy here; the style feels unique. Which is why Müller-Ruprecht is quickly becoming one of the more talked-about estates in Germany.

This is a rare opportunity to follow a vineyard, and an estate, through six vintages - but it's not widely available. There really weren't enough bottles to offer things solo, so we have only a few six-packs and this is the only way they will be sold. 

Thank you as always for the support!

2015 Müller-Ruprecht Riesling Saumagen "N" Grand Cru Dry
The 2015 shows the ripeness and power of the vintage, with dark citrus fruits and melon. There is a glycerin-rich feel to the wine, yet it is edged by spice and has great structure. This is definitely the most mature of the wines, entering a perfect drinking window.

2016 Müller-Ruprecht Riesling Saumagen "N" Grand Cru Dry
What an overlooked vintage 2016 is - in the best wines (like this) the vintage's delicacy and finesse shines through. This is a joy to drink, with a fresh quinine-like quality to it, like the greatest gin and tonic you've ever had. Profoundly mineral, with salt and an almost liquified rock quality. Stunning wine.

2017 Müller-Ruprecht Riesling Saumagen "N" Grand Cru Dry
This is a monument and one of my favorite vintages. Right now, the wine is profoundly coiled up, inward-looking and compact. Yet you can feel the density and the structure. This is a laser of mineral. Cellar as long as you can, decant, or open two days before drinking!

2018 Müller-Ruprecht Riesling Saumagen "N" Grand Cru Dry
This is superb! Even after the 2017 this feels super fresh. Philipp says the 2018 came in with enormous reduction and lots of tannins. Well, this has all resolved itself because the wine is now soaring. It is slightly broader than the 2017, yet tasting this blind one might still think it was a cooler vintage - the acids and energy are excellent.

2020 Müller-Ruprecht Riesling Saumagen "N" Grand Cru Dry
One of my favorite vintages - the wines are all so open and delicious... and this is in the general framework, yet more precise and delineated. After going through five vintages there really is a distinct minerality, salty and glycerin rich (which I often associate with limestone) yet with this liquified rock quality that almost feels metamorphic. Superb.

2021 Müller-Ruprecht Riesling Saumagen "N" Grand Cru Dry
Profound young wine; reminds me of the 2017 with a dash of the 2020. It has the linear quality and the delicacy of the 2017, yet it's more open and generous right now than the 2017. Perhaps this is still in a friendly phase - drink now or hold for a while! 

This offer is now closed. If you need help finding the wines please email orders@sourcematerialwine.com.