VDP Alumni Club tasting May 2022
The end of May found our Alumni Wine Club members tasting wines from our final “VDP Series”; a trilogy of tastings where we had the rare chance to try a variety of quality wines from Germany.
Our flight featured wines from the regions of Franken, Nahe, Rheinhessen and Baden. We had the pleasure to hear first-hand from the people involved with the making and marketing of such wines. As most of the wines are not available in the UK, we were very lucky to be able to try some authentic examples from quality producers Castell, Balthasar Ress, Prinz Salm and Weingut Hettinger, all belonging under the quality umbrella of the VDP.
Established in 1910, the VDP (Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter) is an association of around 200 wineries with the mission of creating origin-based, high-quality wines. Member wineries are subject to the association ‘s strict quality control regulations. The association has its own classification system in the form of a pyramid where vineyard sites are classified in ascending order into VDP.GUTSWEINE (similar to “villages” wine), VDP.ORTSWEINE (regional wine), VDP.ERSTE LAGE® (similar status to a “1er cru”), and finally VDP.GROSSE LAGE® (similar status to a “Grand Cru”) at the top of the quality pyramid. The eagle as a trademark is seen on all labels and capsules and guarantees the quality of each bottle.
The Wineries
Castell planted Germany’s first Silvaner vines in 1659. Even today, the regional flagship variety Silvaner is at the heart of the estate’s work, grown according to the strict guidelines of the VDP and counted among the pioneers of the first classification system in Franken. The estate’s reputation is built upon its seven VDP-classified single vineyards, five held as monopole vineyards and all dominated by the tremendous quality gypsum keuper soil. Castell is known far and wide for its highly distinctive dry white wines made from Silvaner, of immense aging potential.
Prinz Salm is a family business owning its land and vineyards for more than 800 years with their first wine made in 1219. The winery has vineyards in both Nahe and Rheinessen. Prince Felix, 32nd generation winemaker alongside his wife Princess Victoria run the winery, annually producing roughly 100.000 bottles of wine, mainly from Riesling and small quantities of Pinot Noir.
Sustainability is a big focus for Prinz-Salm, they love their soils and have a mission to keep it healthy, they cultivate the vineyard organically and work with regenerative farming.
Balthasar Ress is a winery based in the Rheingau region overlooking the banks of the river Rhine. It was found in 1870 by a butcher that started a guest house that quickly developed into a winery. Today the business is still solely owned by the Ress family and is run by 5th generation Christian and 4th generation Stefan Ress. The winery boasts being the biggest family-owned certified organic winery in Hessen, with a focus on Riesling and to a lesser extent on the Pinot Noir varieties, grown on loess, clay, slate and quartzite soils.
Weingut Heitlinger are based in Baden and farm their vineyards organically and biodynamically. According to their website their aim is to encourage flora and fauna to thrive in the vineyards and strongly believe that this, alongside the loess and coloured marl soils in their vineyards create wines with a special fruity-mineral character very often witnessed in their premium wines made from Grossen Lagen sites. Members of the Pinot family, named “Burgunder” in German language, account for the 70% of all plantings including Grauburgunder, Weißburgunder, Chardonnay and Auxerrois.
The Wines
Moving on to the wonderful wines of the evening, wine no.1 Balthasar Ress Hattenheimer Schützenhaus 2021 Riesling Kabinett, VDP. Erste Lage Rheingau 10.5% abv, comes from the 1er Cru status Hattenheimer Schützenhaus vineyard in the cool Rheingau region. The vines face South-Southwest getting as much warmth as possible whilst avoiding exposure to cold easterly winds. 2021 was a cooler vintage compared to 2020 and this was evident on the flavours of this wine. We sniffed lemon, lime, yellow apple and fresh pineapple aromas with hints of white blossom. Off dry on the palate but being a Riesling, it displayed a distinct high acidity which masterfully blanketed its sugar content. A well-crafted Riesling Kabinett, a refreshing summer wine to enjoy on its own, with spicy food or white fish on the barbeque.
Wine no.2 Prinz Salm Wallhäuser Felseneck 2020 Riesling Kabinett VDP.Grosse Lage Nahe, 8.5%abv was another Riesling Kabinett but from the Nahe region with the grapes coming from a VDP.Grosse Lage vineyard (Grand Cru). Stretching up 300m and located next to a forest, the Wallhäuser Felseneck vineyard benefits from cooler temperatures and is a great source of grapes for warmer vintages. Healthy grapes are harvested at specific level of sweetness for the Kabinett Prädikats whilst making sure acidity is retained. Fermentation begins spontaneously partly in stainless steel and partly in barrel with time spent on the lees. Here we got aromas of citrus, pear, yellow apple alongside quince and tropical fruit with hints of fresh chamomile blossom. On the palate it is medium dry with intense fruit and a wonderful acidity balancing against the sweetness. The wine finishes off in a refreshing note. An outstanding wine that can be enjoyed on its own or with sushi and wasabi, Asian cuisine or seafood dishes.
Wine no.3 Prinz Salm Binger Scharlachberg 2018 Riesling Grosses Gewächs (Dry) VDP.Grosse Lage Nahe 12.5% abv is made from grapes grown in the Scharlachberg vineyard that lies on weathered red slate, hence the name Scarlet Mountain. 2018 was a warm vintage and quality and yield were at a high level. We could taste the ripeness here, the nose is filled with ripe lemon, pineapple, jasmine blossom, hints of petrol and menthol notes. This is a dry GG (Grosses Gewächs) with opulent flavours and a long finish. Can pair so well with white meat, pasta or steak but more importantly can be kept to age for years in the cellar.
Our next two samples, wines 4 and 5, came from Franconia in Northern Bavaria and its flagship varietal, Silvaner. This created much discussion amongst our members, especially regarding Silvaner’s popularity and how this has been surpassed by Riesling in recent years. Although the variety can be very productive and create somewhat neutral aromas, if yields are kept low, it can create elegant and multi-layered wines indicative of their terroir something we largely witnessed during our tasting. In Castell’s vineyards the Silvaner grapes are grown in Franconia’s famous gypsum keuper, a unique Triassic period soil that due to its high sulphate and mineral content imparts ageability and a sense of terroir to the final wine. In the winery the grapes are carefully sorted, pressed, fermented spontaneously and matured in 1200lt Stück or Foudre oak barrels made with a low intervention philosophy from the same terroir where the grapes are grown. The wines are stored on the lees a year or so to develop further complexity.
Wine 4, Castell 2020 Casteller Hohnart Silvaner Trocken VDP. Erste Lage Franken 13%, is a first growth with refreshing citrus fruit such as lemon and lime, herbal notes, yeasty and salty with a hint of bitterness. This is a multi-layered and elegant Silvaner, dry on the palate with enough acidity to keep it going for a few years. We loved trying it with butter braised Asparagus with lemon and chives but can also match barbequed seabream or seabass.
Wine number 5 Castell 2013 Casteller Schlossburg Silvaner Trocken VDP. Grosse Lage Franken 13%. was a big surprise and a testament of the ageability of Silvaner. It comes from a classified Grosse Lage (Grand Cru) vineyard and has been kept in cellar for a later release. Our glasses were filled with aromas of lime zest, dried apricot, hay, saffron, blossom, yeast and hints of marzipan. Such was the complexity of this wine that we could sip it all night long and still find hundreds of aroma and taste descriptors. On the palate it is dry and fresh with pronounced flavour intensity of mushrooms, brioche and toasted spice. This is an extremely food friendly wine. Castell suggests pairing it with wild mushrooms, scallops and roasted veal; classic tafelspitz with sides of applesauce and horseradish; or the simple stylings of a carefully curated cheese plate brimming with mature Emmental and other hard cheeses.
We finished off our tasting with the Weingut Heitlinger’s 2018 Eichelberger Hilsbach Weissburgunder Grosses Gewächs VDP.Grosse Lage Baden 13%, a Pinot Blanc from the warmer Baden region from the monopole Grand Cru classified vineyard, Eichelberg. The vineyard lays at a very steep angle in the Northern part of Baden, at 300m elevation. It is surrounded by forest which naturally lowers temperatures but still enjoys good level of sunshine. Such factors create fruit driven elegant wines with high acidity and good structure. The grapes are grown organically, are hand-picked and pressed in vertical basket press over several hours for an interesting slow tannin extraction. Fermentation begins spontaneously in 500lt tonneaux and 1200lt Stück barrels. The wines remain in the winery and are released 3 years later.
This was a fresh Pinot Blanc with grapefruit, pineapple and papaya fruit, herbal notes with hints of spice. On the palate it is dry (indicated by the letters GG on the label) with high acidity, well-structured with a long refreshing finish. It can pair very well with crisp salads, pasta, dark meat in cream sauce, poultry or grilled fish.
Another wonderful tasting of super quality wines from Germany. It was interesting to try a 2018 Riesling and Weissburgunder and two Silvaner wines, a fresh 2020 and a developing 2013 where all the neutral flavours of youth had turned into an excitingly complex wine. As Elizabeth, Felix and Maximilian mentioned, Germany has come a long way in educating people on the quality of its wines and it is now at a point where more and more it is imperative to educate people that these wines can stick around, can be bought to be drunk now but also can be kept in the cellar for future enjoyment.
If you have a minimum of WSET Level 2 wine qualification, you are welcome to join the Enjoy Discovering Wine Alumni Club, which meets online 10 times annually. For more details: Alumni Club.
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