Joh. Jos. Prüm, Wehlen Riesling on its sundial
11 bottles from the estate, from light Kabinett to AuslesePatience: that is the first thing a bottle from this house asks for. The wine comes out of the glass closed, almost mute, sometimes with a touch of gas and a yeasty smell that clears after an hour. Give it that time, and the Mosel appears: lemon, green apple, slate smoke.
The family has been making wine at Wehlen since the family division of 1911, on four neighbouring slopes. Three Prädikat levels are enough to find your way, from the light Kabinett to the Auslese for the end of the meal. The capsules, for their part, rank the selections: the gold one marks the finest of a harvest.
Joh Jos Prüm - Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Spätlese 2022
A great Mosel Riesling, pure and crystalline, where the finesse of the sugar is balanced by a vibrant minerality.
Joh Jos Prüm - Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Auslese 2022
A magnificent Mosel Riesling, combining refined sweetness, crystalline tension, and profound minerality.
Joh Jos Prüm - Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spätlese 2022
A superb Mosel Riesling, pure and crystalline, where controlled sweetness meets vibrant freshness.
Joh Jos Prüm - Wehlener Sonnenuhr Kabinett 2022
A great Mosel Riesling, pure and crystalline, where the finesse of the sugar combines with vibrant mineral tension.
Joh Jos Prüm - Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Goldkap 2018
A Mosel Auslese combining aromatic intensity, controlled sweetness and crystalline freshness.
Joh Jos Prüm - Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese 2023
A great Moselle Riesling, combining refined sweetness, vibrant freshness, and mineral purity.
Joh Jos Prüm - Graacher Himmelreich Spätlese 2022
A precise and crystalline Moselle Riesling, where controlled sweetness meets vibrant mineral freshness.
Joh Jos Prüm - Graacher Himmelreich Kabinett 2023
A Mosel Riesling of great purity, combining crystalline freshness, controlled sweetness, and mineral depth.
Joh Jos Prüm - Graacher Himmelreich Auslese 2022
A great Moselle Riesling, combining crystalline purity, controlled sweetness, and remarkable mineral tension.
Joh Jos Prüm - G. Himmelreich A. Goldkap 2022
A magnificent Moselle Riesling, pure and crystalline, where the finesse of the slate meets perfectly balanced sweetness.
Joh Jos Prüm - Bernkasteler Badstube Kabinett 2023
A precise and crystalline Moselle Riesling, where the finesse of the Bernkasteler Badstube terroir shines through.
The house's cuvées and their terroirs
Four neighbouring slopes, all weathered slate, all hanging above the river between Bernkastel and Zeltingen. The Wehlener Sonnenuhr gives the finest line, the Graacher Himmelreich a little more flesh, the Zeltinger Sonnenuhr a saline firmness, the Bernkasteler Badstube the most tender grain.
| Vintage | Slope | What the label tells you | Price per bottle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bernkasteler Badstube Kabinett 2023See the product page | Bernkasteler Badstube | Kabinett, off-dry | €47.80 per bottle, in packs of 3 |
| Graacher Himmelreich Kabinett 2023See the product page | Graacher Himmelreich | Kabinett, off-dry | €55.80 per bottle, in packs of 2 |
| Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Spätlese 2022See the product page | Zeltinger Sonnenuhr | Spätlese, medium-sweet | €61 per bottle, in packs of 2 |
| Wehlener Sonnenuhr Kabinett 2022See the product page | Wehlener Sonnenuhr | Kabinett, off-dry | €64 per bottle, in packs of 2 |
| Graacher Himmelreich Spätlese 2022See the product page | Graacher Himmelreich | Spätlese, medium-sweet | €65.20 per bottle, in packs of 2 |
| Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spätlese 2022See the product page | Wehlener Sonnenuhr | Spätlese, medium-sweet | €71.80 per bottle, in packs of 2 |
| Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Auslese 2022See the product page | Zeltinger Sonnenuhr | Auslese, medium-sweet | €73.80 per bottle, in packs of 2 |
| Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese 2023See the product page | Wehlener Sonnenuhr | Auslese, medium-sweet | €84 per bottle, in packs of 2 |
| Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Goldkap 2018See the product page | Wehlener Sonnenuhr | Auslese, gold capsule | €186 per bottle, individually |
The capsule completes the reading of the label: at equal Prädikat and equal slope, the gold one marks a superior selection, drawn from the most concentrated berries. The estate signs a second one on the Graacher Himmelreich, at €168 a bottle, as a single bottle.
When to open a bottle from this house
These Rieslings live far longer than most whites: acidity and sugar protect them together. The estate deliberately releases young wines that are still closed, which leaves the whole curve ahead of you.
| Age of the bottle | In the glass | What to do with it |
|---|---|---|
| The current vintage | Green apple, lemon, a discreet spritz and a smell of fresh yeast on opening | Open an hour ahead or decant: the nose sorts itself out |
| Two to five years | The fruit recedes, the acidity leads on its own, the wine closes up | The awkward age of these bottles, let them sleep |
| Five to ten years | Mirabelle, lime blossom, the sugar melts into the texture | The widest window for a Kabinett or a Spätlese |
| Ten to twenty years | Honey, chamomile, wax, the petrol note of mature Riesling | The moment for an Auslese, with a blue cheese or foie gras |
| Twenty years and more | Candied fruit, saffron, an almost salty finish that goes on and on | The preserve of the gold capsules and the great vintages |
Lay the bottles down at 10–14 °C, away from the light. Serve them cool, at around 8–10 °C: the more sugar there is, the more the cold does it good. The neighbours of these slopes are gathered on the Mosel and Saar page.
A bottle for every moment
From the aperitif Kabinett to the gold capsule for the cellar, here is where to start with this house.
Discover the house style
The sundial slope in its lightest version: eight per cent alcohol, a straight acidity, a hint of sugar that rounds everything off.
Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Kabinett 2022 · €64 per bottle, in a pack of 2Start with the most tender
The estate's most affordable cuvée, born on the slopes that overlook Bernkastel. Supple fruit, smoky finish, to be served well chilled as an aperitif.
Joh. Jos. Prüm Bernkasteler Badstube Kabinett 2023 · €47.80 per bottle, in a pack of 3At the table
A later picking, riper fruit, more open sugar. The partner for spicy cooking, roast pork and sweet-and-sour dishes.
Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Spätlese 2022 · €71.80 per bottle, in a pack of 2With foie gras
Botrytised berries sorted by hand: honey, candied apricot, and an acidity that refreshes the palate after every sip.
Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese 2023 · €84 per bottle, in a pack of 2Taste the slope opposite
The same house style on the Zeltingen sundial, a notch firmer and more saline than its Wehlen neighbour.
Joh. Jos. Prüm Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Spätlese 2022 · €61 per bottle, in a pack of 2Compare two terroirs
Graach gives more flesh and more immediate roundness than Wehlen. Open it side by side with the sundial Auslese to grasp the difference.
Joh. Jos. Prüm Graacher Himmelreich Auslese 2022 · €75 per bottle, in a pack of 2Give a rare bottle
The vintage's gold capsule, the finest selection of the harvest, on the most famous slope of the Mosel. Ageing potential counted in decades.
Joh. Jos. Prüm Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Goldkap 2018 · €186 per bottle, sold individuallyTravel the whole valley
From Bernkastel to the Saar, the regional page gathers the neighbours of these slopes and the other estates in the selection.
Section page · Mosel and Saar
Why these wines reveal themselves slowly
The house owns its reductive style. The musts ferment with their own yeasts, slowly, in old oak foudres, and the wines stay on their lees until bottling. The result: a young bottle opens on a touch of gas and a smell of fresh yeast, sometimes sulphurous. That is the house signature, and it fades with air.
This reduction protects the wine. It explains why a Kabinett of eight per cent alcohol crosses ten years keeping its drive, and why an Auslese lasts far longer. So serve these bottles with a little notice: open them, decant if you feel like it, come back an hour later. The next day's glass is often the finest.
How do you choose
We taste every cuvée before listing it, and here we look for two things: the clarity of the fruit beneath the reduction, and the length of the saline finish. With this estate, we keep all three sugar levels rather than just one, because the choice is made on the meal planned as much as on taste.
The Wine Wanderer Team
What we are asked about Joh. Jos. Prüm
Kabinett, Spätlese or Auslese: which one to choose?
The Kabinett is the lightest: lively, barely sweet, perfect as an aperitif or with smoked fish. The Spätlese comes from a later picking, the fruit is riper and the sugar more open, ideal at the table with spicy cooking. The Auslese sorts overripe berries: it is the glass for the end of the meal, with a blue cheese or foie gras.
Why are these bottles sold in packs?
The estate ships its cuvées by full cases and we keep that packaging to hold the price. The price shown on each listing is that of the bottle, and the sales format sits right beside it: packs of two most of the time, packs of three for the Bernkasteler Badstube. The two gold capsules are sold as single bottles.
Are these Rieslings sweet?
The Prädikat wines of this house carry real residual sugar, from a few dozen grams for a Kabinett to a good deal more for an Auslese. The acidity of the Mosel stretches it to the point of making it almost invisible: a Kabinett passes for dry at the table. That balance between sugar and acid makes the estate's whole reputation.
What does the gold capsule, Goldkapsel, mean?
The capsule serves as the estate's internal hierarchy. At equal Prädikat and equal slope, the gold capsule marks a superior selection, drawn from the most concentrated berries of the harvest. The catalogue offers two: the Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Goldkap 2018 at €186 a bottle, and the gold capsule of the Graacher Himmelreich 2022 at €168 a bottle, both sold as single bottles.
How long can these wines be kept?
Reckon on ten years at the very least for a Kabinett, a good deal more for an Auslese, whose finest bottles are drunk after several decades. Acidity and sugar work together as preservatives. The ageing table gives the full curve, including the closed phase these Rieslings go through around their third year.
My wine smells of yeast when I open it, is that normal?
Yes, it is the house signature. Fermentation with the yeasts of the place, long ageing on the lees, careful bottling: the young bottle first releases a note of fresh yeast, sometimes sulphurous, with a slight prickle. A spell in a decanter or an hour in the glass is enough, and the Riesling appears intact.
What is the Wehlener Sonnenuhr?
It is the slope that overlooks the village of Wehlen, on blue slate and very steep, at the edge of the Mosel. It owes its name to the sundial built in the vineyard in the nineteenth century to tell the pickers the time. The family farms some of the most highly regarded plots in Germany there, and it is the heart of its catalogue.
At what temperature should these bottles be served?
Eight to ten degrees suit the whole range: the cold tightens the sugar and brings the acidity forward. Take the bottle out of the fridge a quarter of an hour before serving, and choose a fairly wide white-wine glass, which helps the initial reduction to clear. Leftovers keep for three days, stoppered, in the fridge.
What is the difference between the estate's slopes?
Four neighbouring slopes, all weathered slate. The Wehlener Sonnenuhr gives the finest and longest line. The Graacher Himmelreich adds flesh and immediate roundness. The Zeltinger Sonnenuhr leans towards salinity and firmness. The Bernkasteler Badstube, the most tender, offers the easiest way into the estate.