The Upper River Nahe meanders past steep slopes and precipitous vineyards, and on these slopes, between the villages of Oberhausen and Bad Kreuznach, the Donnhoffs cultivate vines. They haven`t chosen such difficult to work sites for fun (Hollenpfad, 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 wine. It works; in fact, they`ve been making wine here since the 1750s.
Germany
Germany
I always wanted to be a grown up and love Riesling, but years ago every approach ended in rebuff. Cool climate Rieslings from New Zealand or the USA didn't quite get there, and most Aussie examples smell like a can of kerosene poured over a wrecked cosmetics counter. Not pretty. Every recent experience with German Riesling has ended in happiness and total satisfaction. Have I grown up (unlikely) or is German the key word here? What Germany has over its Riesling growing rivals is a truly cool climate - most years anyway - and some fantastic terroirs, selected over hundreds of years for their character and quality. Check out regions and producers for more details, but more importantly, taste them! And Germany isn't just about white wine these days, or even just Riesling in the whites. Don't forget Pinor Noir, now that climate change and better farming are having their effect. And Franken's Sylvaner won't be left out of the picture, despite being described to me by a native as 'great with salad'! And so much more, so much more.
- Dr LoosenThe Loosen empire extends across the world these days and they have a swanky new HQ from which to direct these other operations and where they make their Mosel gems. Not quite in the shadow of the new bridge - an over-budget, behind-schedule and unnecessary monstrosity - the cellars shelter some of the loveliest wines from the super vineyards neighbouring the river. There is a long heritage here and in the vineyards. Although they had been in the family for many, many years, the wine business was always run as a sideline until Ernie and his brother Tomas took over.
- Furst
Franken doesn’t trip off the tongue in a list of Germany’s greatest winemaking regions, but it ought to. The Fursts have been farming sites here since 1638, and the quality of their terroir has elevated the winery to one of Germany’s very finest. They really rose to greatness after 1975, when Paul Furst took over. He focused on buying plots on the Centgrafenburg, a steep, concave site above the River Main, and arguably Franken’s finest spot.
- Gunderloch
All change at this estate as in 2010 prodigal son Johannes Hasselbach, having run away from home to train as an accountant, returned to take over the estate. Although he grew up in the vines he worked at the jobs he was given, rather than learning the business. On his return though, first he went travelling and working on all sorts of estates around the world and returned with loads of questions. Some of them parents Agnes Hasselbach and Harley-Davidson-riding husband Fritz couldn`t answer and some they didn`t want to answer.
- Jean Stodden
‘Neither my father nor I ever planted a white vine’, says Alexander Stodden proudly. Stoddens have been making wine since the 16th century, and at Jean Stodden it’s all about Spatburgunder. With the magical combination of steep slopes, low yields and some very old vines, Alexander is able to craft exquisite Pinot Noir from the terraced slopes of the Ahr Valley, in the village of Rech, just south of Bonn. His smallest plot is 12 square metres. Farming is sustainable, as organic as possible.
- Weingut Joseph Leitz
Leitz has changed. Last time I visited they were based in a biggish house at the top of the village. They hugely annoyed the neighbours during harvest and bottling times and were very restricted in what they could do. No longer. Now based just outside town in a brand new and shiny warehouse and office complex (that`s already slated for expansion) it is as though they`ve been freed from their previous confinement to fly. The investment has been enormous with the latest in bottling and labelling, boxing and palletising machines freeing staff for more interesting jobs.
