Although a number of estates had yet to show their wines, we held the regional finals for the Mosel last week in the renovated kitchen at Eckhard Kiefer's estate in Dalsheim, a lovely old village still cradled within its medieval walls in the hilly backwaters of Rheinhessen. As the acidities were very high - think green apples - through early October and did not fall even as the grapes continued to ripen, the wines were different from much anything that I had ever tasted here before. In sum, it was an Auslese vintage…and estates like Joh. Jos. Prüm made little else. In many cases, though, the finest wines have still yet to be bottled, which is making it difficult to keep deadlines for this year's guide. As elsewhere, one of the key quality criteria is how each estates managed the acidities. Anyone here who claims not to have de-acidified anything in some way, shape or form is probably lying, so the dry(ish) styles were often at best trying. Grans-Fassian and Kesselstatt were notable exceptions. Similar, most of the Kabinett were either green and tart or declassified Spätlese. From there on it became most interesting. We have already separated the wheat from the chaff. Our final tastings in two weeks will tell us what has risen to the top. Comments