To satisfy my obsessions with German wine and also that of Germany and its tumultuous history, I need to do a lot of travelling, reading, eating and drinking. It certainly helps that I have moved to Germany to work in Weinbau (which would be Exhibit A in the case of my obsession, I suppose.) Part of all of this, as far as I am concerned, is to follow certain paths to their completion in order to better understand the larger picture and to attempt to answer for myself the significant questions surrounding German wine. Luckily, there is no shortage of historical estates, vineyards, and institutions here to help me in my quest for satisfaction and it should keep me quite busy over the course of my lifetime. One of the nagging irritations that come up frequently for me when I read older books about German wine is the reference to the Liebfrauenstift vineyard in Worms. This is of course the infamous site that spawned the dubious creation of Liebfraumilch. The story is well known:
The Wormser Liebfrauenstift vineyard has been famous for over 500 years. It was first tended by the Capuchin order from the Liebfrauenstift Abbey. Much of it was purchased in the early 1800s by Peter Joseph Valckenberg, whose descendants own some 90% of it today (another high-profile owner is the excellent Weingut Gutzler.) P.J. Valckenberg was (and is) the most important merchant of German wine in Germany and the demand created for Liebfraumilch in foreign markets (notably the UK), far outstripped the quantity that could be produced from the vineyard. This led to the creation of ‘Brand Liebfraumilch’, which can be supplied from any vineyard in the Rheinhessen, Rheingau, Pfalz or Nahe and is usually made from high-yielding Müller-Thurgau and not Riesling or Silvaner (the three permitted vines.) The last twenty years has seen a drastic waning in popularity for ‘The Milk of our beloved Lady’, and the damage done to the reputation of German wines by the long arms and impactful positioning of Liebfraumilch has certainly been rebuilt, though its legacy lives on in other cheap, branded German wine bottled with picture windows or in frosted bottles produced by large, faceless, factory wineries.
A consequence of the large fortune garnered by P.J. Valckenberg was, not surprisingly, the degradation of the Liebfrauenstift name and as was (and in some instances continues to be) the case for many of Germanys most famous vineyards, sleep came easy on a soft bed of laurels and quality of the wine declined. Past references to the wines of the vineyard speak of sanitary issues and pronounced earthy flavors. It seems now that things are changing in that regard and rapid progress has been made in correcting the flaws. Weingut Liebfrauenstift has adopted the new VDP classification system of Estate wine, Ortswein (Village wine), and Lagenwein (Vineyard designated) presumably in an attempt to be accepted for membership. I tasted through a near complete range of 2009s and a couple of 2010s and was impressed with the purity of expression in most of them. I have also visited the city frequently and have seen the vineyard throughout its yearly cycle. Before I tasted the wines I remember being surprised that such measures for low yields and high quality were being employed.
The vineyard is a Clos surrounding the Liebfrauenstift church situated within the city of Worms. The soil is sandstone over gravel and mixed with calcium-rich fossil sediment from the Rhein which is now only a couple hundred meters away. The vineyards proximity to the river and its location within the city undoubtedly has an influence upon the ripeness of the grapes. All of the wines are made from grapes grown within the 13 hectares of the Wormser Liebfrauenstift (which is planted to Riesling and Weissburgunder), though the quality levels are labeled differently.
Though I did taste others, the only wines that I took detailed notes on are the two that I purchased:
2009 Weingut Liebfrauenstift in Worms a/R. Riesling Trocken -Rheinhessen, Germany 12,5% alc
Succulent fruit of pineapple, ginger-spiced orange, and mango. It is mildly floral, mildly starchy in a grape-blossom sort of way as well as lemon-grass and also some mid-palate savour. The acids are bright and lively and pull the fruit through to the finish. Clean, dry, reductively brilliant, and impressive. Bottled under Vino-Lok.
2009 Weingut Liebfrauenstift in Worms a/R. Wormser Riesling Trocken –Rheinhessen, Germany 12,0% alc.
Pears and peaches, lime-zest, more restraint, but also more class. Pungently floral in an Ur-Rheinhessen sort of way and intertwined with that, it shows deep iron ore minerality. Firm in structure with juicy acidity. Remarkably, this is a Riesling that I believe most people would identify as one from Rheinhessen if it were served to them blind. Very good.
I have not yet tried the ‘Kirchenschlüssel’ (the higher-end 2010s were not yet available) which is the very top wine (at 28€, that is one spendy bottle of Liebfraumilch!) I suppose that curiosity will eventually get the better of me. My overall impression is that while the Weingut is not at the level of the Rheinhessen elite, it certainly deserves acknowledgement of its achievements and I’ll be happy to watch the progress.
Cheers,
Bill