Karl Smühle

 Of the “big three” in the Ruwer (Grunhaus and Karthäuserhof, the other two) this is the least expensive by far. Ruwer wines are prized in general for their astonishing spiciness and delicacy. Since the acquisition of great Grand Cru sites in Kasel, Karlsmühle has become a serious landowner and very important producer of green-bottle Rieslings. Ruwer wines can be the ne plus ultra of refinement, with their own keenly slicing flavors of cassis and sometimes cinnamon.

•Vineyard area: 12 hectares
•Annual production: 5,500 cases
•Top sites: Lorenzhöfer Felslay and Mäuerchen, Kaseler Nies’chen and Kehrnagel
•Soil types: Clay and slate
•Grape varieties: 90% Riesling, 3% Spätburgunder, 2% each of Müller-Thurgau, Weissburgunder and Kerner, 1% Elbling