Schedules worked out well to gather friends and visit some wineries in the Pfalz.
One of my long-time favorites is Rebholz, so happy to visit and learn more. Lots of interesting stuff, including the fact that they have isolated and frozen their own cellar yeast, which they can use in (supposedly) surgical ways to promote fermentations as they like. (In comparison to the later visit to Koehler-Ruprecht, where no yeast additions occur)
Unfortunately they were sold out of 2021 GGs, and the 2022 GGs were getting bottled in the next days. So we had to content ourselves with drinking the Ortsweine and the Terroirweine. As a result, I learned that many of those wines are declassified from Kastanienbusch and Sonnenschein parcels. I never realized that because I had never explored those wines. Maybe I was a lackluster amateur, or a cherry picker.
Mostly 2022s, which were all fresh clean and Rebholz in style. The 2022 Riesling Ökonomierat and 2022 Weissburgunder Trocken both perfectly correct wines that tasted like their respective grapes and would be good for large outdoor parties.
From declassified Kastanienbusch grapes we had 2022 and 2020 Riesling vom Rotliegenden. Both nice wines, with a bit more richness and I might move these indoors to non-wine-focused dinner parties.
Same theme for the declassified Im Sonnenschein wines, the 2022 Weissburgunder Muschelkalk and the 2022 and 2018 Riesling vom Muschelkalk. All what you would expect given vintage, grape and Rebholz. These are limestone, and they show more delicate and less robust (adjusting for 2018) compared to the red slate/rotliegenden wines. All solid wines that I would serve for non-wine-focused dinner parties.
It was interesting for me to taste through these wines, because I always enjoyed Rebholz GGs for the combination of power and elegant restraint. These ‘lower level’ wines had similar levels of elegant restraint. But without the same depth and guts, they were not as exciting, especially as they maybe lacked a bit of zippy life. To use a technical term. But really we’re splitting hairs here, for the indulgence of our highly-specific preferences. All good wines.
Also tasted 2019 Gewürztraminer von Lößlehm which was one of the more restrained elegant and linear Gewürztraminers I can remember. Lovely and would be happy to drink more, although I doubt I’ll ever find a reason/occasion. Lastly the 2021 Chardonnay R was marked by its barrique but still of course in the clean and fresh direction. Will be interesting to see if Germany further develops these Chardonnays. I find it hard to pro-actively choose them, but sent some to the in-laws…
Next stop was just down the road at Dr. Wehrheim. A new producer to me. I had not even tasted the wines yet, although I bought some from Lyle F. I was very glad for the visit, and very impressed with the wines. Organic, biodynamic, and many similar approaches as Rebholz. But with a bit more ripeness and zest to the wines, a different character in the mouth.
2022 Weissburgunder Aus Dem Muschelkalk and 2022 Weissburgunder Rosenberg were both very nice zesty lively wines that we also enjoyed drinking outdoors later for dinner. The Aus Dem Muschelkalk is fresher and the Rosenberg gets more chewy layered texture from 30% barrique. But both still qualify as fresh and fun.
The 2021 Rieslings from Aus dem Rotliegenden and Aus dem Bundsandstein are yet another opportunity to see the importance of soil. Both zesty fresh and fun, a bit more body in the Bundsandstein, and of course the great precision of 2021. More enjoyable than the Rebholz wines of the same level, although admittedly a vintage difference…
Extremely educational to taste 2021 Kastanienbusch Riesling and 2021 Kastanienbusch Köppel Riesling. The first is from the historic portion of Kastanienbusch (mostly rotliegenden/red slate) whereas the Köppel is from the 1971 extension of the vineyard, which really should be a separate vineyard (and is mostly bundsandstein/sandstone). The Kastanienbusch was what I know and love of the vineyard, poised, stately, but with freshness and verve, a great success in 2021. The Kastanienbusch Köppel was looser and less poised, and seemed doomed to lose in a head-to-head. But, Wehrheim prices both the same at the winery (46 euros – compared to 69 euros for the Rebholz Kastanienbusch) and I’m sure the Köppel would have many virtues, were one to explore it in more depth.
A detour into the 2021 Rosenberg Chardonnay, which continues the peculiar German expression. Clean neutral flavors with a round shape and texture. I find it hard to get excited, but there is probably a use for these wines.
Lastly, some Spätburgunder to send us on our way. The 2017 Kastanienbusch Köppel and the 2020 Im Sonnenschein. The 2017 Köppel was lacy elegant and perfectly ready to drink, for my palate. The 2020 Im Sonnenschein was riper, fuller, more power. I bought both for further exploration.
Overall, a great find and very happy that Fass Selections will work with them. Will see how deep the offerings go, probably not all of these bottlings will come to the US. But will take what I can get. It also doesn’t hurt that young Franz is a chatty and charming winemaker, with lots of energy for the future. Some more synergy with LF here…
Our final stop was at Koehler-Ruprecht, which is another of my long-time favorites. Very instructive to see their rustic buildings and cellars. Quite the contrast to the refined cool elegance of the Rebholz property. Both great operations in their own right, but these buildings/grounds appearances are obviously not randomly distributed, so it’s nice to see where the wines come from. And of course it’s a cliché, but drinking the KR wines out of perfect Zaltos on a warm day in their delightful courtyard, could not have been a more enjoyable experience with their wines!
It also didn’t hurt to drink a lot of 2021s. The 2021 Weissburgunder trocken was so good, so clean fresh and lively, but also structured and present in the mouth. Would take this for an outdoor party and have more fun. 2021 Chardonnay Kabinett trocken tasted eerily similar to the Weissburgunder. Neutral and no/little malo, not much chardonnay distinctiveness. But there are more fun grapes here…
Such as Riesling. 2021 Kallstadt Riesling Kabinett Trocken is correct and will serve your outdoor party well. But when you move to the table, maybe choose 2021 Kallstadt Saumagen Riesling Kabinett Trocken or 2021 Kallstadt Saumagen Riesling Spätlese Trocken both clean, poised and 2021, but with more of the classic K-R herbal and straw aromas adding complexity, in the proper way for their respective pradikats. 2020 Kallstadt Saumagen Riesling Spätlese Trocken is more evolved, broader, and a nice interpretation of vintage variation. But the 2021 is so classic.
2020 Kallstadt Saumagen Riesling Auslese Trocken is maybe less typical of Riesling, but it’s where I think K-R gets even more distinctive and special (and of course the R bottlings). I love the extra body and the extra layers, but still with freshness and precision. And those distinctive K-R flavors are even more apparent in the Auslese. I really like a lot of GG-type wines across Germany, and this has a special place in that rotation, for my palate.
I don’t often drink their off-dry wines, although the 2021 Steinacker Kabinett would be a fine choice if one were in the neighborhood and wanted a wine in that style.
Lastly, Spätburgunder. The 2020 Spätburgunder Kabinett trocken is the wine we get in the US (even though often labelled Pinot Noir on US bottles, it is Wädenswil (German) clone 777). Such lovely bright cherry juice. On the fresh juicy side of the grape, but with KR linear structure, not at all the round bubble that other producers make. I’m a long-time fan of the wine, and it has a place for easy Spätburgunder drinking.
But I was intrigued to see the 2019 Pinot Noir Spätlese Trocken, which is a French clone (777) and not exported to the US. Here were have a darker richer and more layered interpretation, but still silky smooth and ready to drink. An interesting style, not really Burgundian, but more substance than fresh juicy style. Not bad for price (25 euros). A bit more serious than the Spätburgunder Kabinett trocken, but both nice and drinkable. It just depends what interpretation you want.
Overall, very excited to see the K-R operation. I came in a big fan, and left an even bigger fan.