Masters of the Nahe: a 2022 Dönnhoff mixed case

Helmut Dönnhoff puts his success down to key vineyards in the Nahe Valley: 'Extraordinary wines are based on extraordinary vineyards, and I'm fortunate to have had the opportunity to work several world-class sites.' His son Cornelius (who took over at the family winery in 2007, and was very quickly named German Winemaker of the Year) likes to insist that careful winemaking is also essential. Either way, as Anne Krebiehl MW wrote last year on vinous.com, Dönnhoff are 'one of Germany's best wine estates'.

In the Nahe as elsewhere, 2022 was hot, sunny and very dry. Some welcome rain arrived in September, and set the stage for a beautiful harvest in October. As a result of the Dönnhoffs' careful vineyard management, their 2022s show no signs of having been produced in a hot year; they are wines of great precision and clarity. To help you get to grips with what we think is a fabulous vintage for this top German producer, we have put together a mixed case with money off and free delivery.

Our case contains three bone dry wines, and three wines in off-dry styles. In the dry set, Tonschiefer (from grey slate soil) is chiselled and floral, Kahlenberg (from quartz soils) is a dazzling 'dry Spätlese' (so made from very ripe grapes), and Hollenpfad (from sandstone) is a Grosses Gewächs (grand cru) where the Dönnhoffvines are particularly old. In Kabinett (off-dry) Krotenpfuhl has loamy smoke notes mingling with the citrus fruit, Leistenberg is peachy and floral.  Spätlese is another step up the ripeness scale, and Hermannshöhle is the Nahe's top-ranked site, benchmarking everything else made in the valley.

We'll also have these wines on tasting this Thursday, so do drop in to our Copthall Avenue store – wines will be open from noon. /NT