25 years ago, Mary's Uncle Syd gave us a black bottle of German wine:
1982 Albiger Petersberg
Auslese
Anbaugebiet Rheinhessen
For some reason we didn’t drink it soon after. It was marked “Qualitatswein mit Pradicat”, but what was its real quality? Twenty-five years ago, German wine was out of fashion anyway. It lay on the bottom shelf of the wine storage cabinet for as long as we have had the cabinet. But last night, 23rd January 2007, I opened it – with difficulty: the cork disintegrated. So I strained it through a tea-strainer into a jug and then into a decanter. We drank it with neighbours Beryl and John. It was a honey-golden colour and tasted as it looked, not cloyingly sweet, but smooth, delicate and delicious.