sticky brown goo coming out of Riesling cork?

late 1990s spätlese which looks quite high quality. But there is this st icky goo coming out of the cork

get the cork out unless anyone has any suggestions as to how this should be done? Or will this be too sweet whatever I do with it?

Sounds like simple seepage (once wine with residual sugar seeps, fluid and alcohol evaporate, leaving....mostly sugar). Seepage is never great, can im ply warm storage, but Riesling with RS is likely to survive better than mos t wines(and some were just overfilled- I see more weepy Germans than anythi ng else). I'd just temper expectations and dry.

should read "I'd just temper expectations and try."

Thanks for that, but how??? Do I have to get a cork puller with two stra ight prongs which go either side of the cork and twist? Is there a trick? Or just yank it out any way and decant and drink immediately? (I have never heard of decanting any wine from a region where some/all wine sparkles)

I am not conversant with German /Alsace wines at all I am afraid!

raight prongs which go either side of the cork and twist? Is there a trick ? Or just yank it out any way and decant and drink immediately? (I have nev er heard of decanting any wine from a region where some/all wine sparkles)

The 2 pronged cork remover (Ah So or Butler's friend) would work. But if yo u don't have one just open with a regular corkscrew. If cork breaks just fi lter through a cheesecloth, nothing to fear. Occasionally a good German will have a little CO2 spritz, but non-sekt Germ an won't be sparkling

Thanks for that! I juct czeched and this stuff goes for $125 a bottle!! So I was a little apprehensive about both opening it AND leaving it closed (if it may get any sweeter with age)

I've usually been able to open such bottles with a normal corkscrew.

I think you said this was a Spaetlese, in which case you shouldn't think about it as being analogous to a sparkling wine.

On the other hand, if you are lucky you are in for a great treat!

Hugo Ripanykhazov wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@googlegroups.com:

It is quite normal for aged German Rieslings to have some "goo" outside of the cork. Most wineries bottled their wines with a very high fill.

Being an spatlese from the 90's, it should be ready to drink. Difficult to tell how would it be unless you tell us the producer and the vineyard.

An Spatlese from the 90s should have absorbed the residual sugar and could be an excellent wine. Not that you should be in a hurry. Sptleses are sweeter in their youth, and then the residual sugar integrates with the rest of the wine and somehow gets absorbed when it comes to how it tastes.

But all depends on the producer, the vineyard, and the year.

Regards,

s.

So I was a little apprehensive about both opening it AND leaving it closed (if it may get any sweeter with age)

Do let us know how things turned out!