WŸrttemberg
It was time to
look at some German reds, so we had to head in two directions - the Ahr one of the northernmost German wine
regions and to WŸrttemberg, one of its most southerly. It was our mate Stuart
Pigott, the wine writer who works in Berlin, who tipped us off about the ÒJunges
SchwabenÓ (Young Schwabians). Five young growers, Jochen Beurer, Sven
Ellwanger, Hans Hengerer, Rainer Wachtstetter and Jochen Zipf, who had recently
taken over from their parents, wanted to make better wine than the region was
known for. With coaching from Stuttgart sommelier-turned-wine-merchant Bernd
Kreis and early encouragement from respected boutique grower Albrecht Schwegler
and journalists like Stuart, the group is poised for wider recognition - we are
the first to export their wines!
One of their
ideas was to each produce a ÒJunges SchwabenÓ bottling of their specialist
variety at a uniform price. Riesling from Beurer, Trollinger from Zipf,
SpŠtburgunder from Hengerer and so on.
The wines are
distinctive, modern and broad in range. Apparently light delicate reds trick
you with their surprising intensity. The whites show another fascinating
expression of Riesling's mineral transparency.
Stuttgart may
not seem like wine country, but you can see vines on the hillsides as you pass
Mercedes HQ. Jochen Beurer, whose career as former European
BMX champion was snuffed out when he did his National Service, took over the
family domain 10 years ago. When we arrived he looked more like a steam train
driver – he was toiling over the family still, belching fire and steam -
distilling fruit to make schnapps.
Albrecht
Schwegler has a machine parts business just outside Stuttgart. He also has a
couple of tiny parcels of vines, barely 1.2 ha in total. Ecological for 17
years but (like many) without certification. Despite the meagre output, he is
held in very high regard in the region and in Germany generally. The
Gault-Millau Guide says ÒGranat 2001 is one of the very best wines of
WŸrttemberg.Ó He wanted to prove that, if made right, WŸrttemberg reds could
age. When we visited he opened a 93 to show how it develops. It was very good!
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red |
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Saphir, Zweigelt and Merlot in 100% new French oak |
2000 |
33.99 |
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Granat, Zweigelt and Merlot. No filtration, one egg white
fining. |
2001 |
49.99 |