2014 Donnhoff: difficult sites, fine wines

15 Jul 2016

Helmut & Cornelius Donnhoff

South of the Mosel, the Nahe makes its way towards the Rhine. In the Upper Nahe Valley the river meanders past steep slopes and precipitous vineyards, and on these slopes, between the villages of Oberhausen and Bad Kreuznach, the Dönnhoffs cultivate vines. They haven't chosen such difficult to work sites for fun (Höllenpfad, after all, means "path to hell") but rather because the slopes offer a combination of exposure and geologically diverse, complex soils which translate into complexity in the fruit and so, eventually, the resulting wine. It works; in fact, they've been making wine here since the 1750s. Helmut Dönnhoff took over the estate in 1971, and was widely regarded as the best producer in the Nahe region. In the last couple of years his son Cornelius has taken over after an extended transition, and in 2015 was himself named German winemaker of the year.

Over the last 20 years, there has been a culture shift in German wines, with more dry wines being made and fewer sweet ones. The Dönnhoffs make wines in both styles, and with vineyards on both sides of the Nahe with quite different aspects and microclimates, are well placed to do so. Sheltered sites lend themselves more to sweeter styles. With gentler slopes and deeper soils, vineyards like the Kahlenberg do well with drier styles. The Grosses Gewachs (great growths) are the most complex, age-worthy dry wines and come from the very best vineyards, notably Felsenberg and Hermannshole, which overlooks a bend in the river and is considered the Nahe's greatest vineyard.

2014 did present challenges for German winemakers. As in Burgundy the weather kept them on their toes; after a beautiful spring brought on early ripening, there followed a cold, wet summer. So when temperatures soared again in the early autumn without remission at night, there was some risk of less-than-noble rot. But the Dönnhoffs compressed their normally leisurely picking calender and the results in these pure, elegant wines, which combine ripe fruit and an acid spine, speak for themselves.  /NT

Offered subject to remaining unsold