Germany’s Gut Hermannsberg is renowned for having all seven of its sites classified as
VDP.Grosse.Lage, the highest VDP vineyard classification. But it also vinifies two village wines and one cuvée from these exact same sites: ‘Vom Schiefer’, ‘Vom Vulkan’ and ‘7 Terroirs’. These first-class terroir wines are crafted with grapes harvested from 15 to 30-year-old ‘young’ vines. They show site characteristics with great precision but are accessible much earlier.
“2023 is a vintage entirely in line with our expectations,” says Gut Hermannsberg Managing Director Jasper Reidel. This refers to the expressive fresh component of the vintage, which runs through all sites and quality levels. Even though 2023 was a challenging year between periods of heavy rain and drought, the turbulence contributed to the incredibly complex, dense wines with energetic tension and outstanding freshness. It's a good thing that wine drinkers don't have to wait for the Grosses Gewächs to be released to enjoy this pleasure:
For this Riesling cuvée, winemaker Karsten Peter selects predominantly younger vines from all seven of the Grosse Lage sites. He cultivates the sites separately, spontaneously ferments them, before allowing the wines to mature on the fine lees for several months and then creates the cuvée. Complexity is thus pre-programmed. The palate is a dance of power and lightness with smoky, mineral notes, deep herbal flavours and citrus and stone fruit components.
Available for € 14.90 in the online shop
‘Vom Schiefer' and ‘Vom Vulkan’ are the so-called “second wines” from the top Hermannsberg and Kupfergrube sites. All the grapes are sourced entirely from those respective vineyards. Their advantage lies in the fact that they are accessible earlier than the Grosses Gewächs wines, while still clearly conveying the terroir of the two exceptional sites. Both Rieslings are spontaneously fermented and vinified dry. They show maximum precision and minerality:
Typical of Hermannsberg: the clay-slate soil with a loess layer is the source of the unmistakable Hermannsberg minerality. A bouquet of citrus fruit, green apple and flint, carried by lightness and freshness.
Available for € 19.90 in the online shop
Typisch Kupfergrube: Die Rieslinge der Kupfergrube zeigen stets intensives Grapefruitaroma sowie kräuterwürzige und rauchige Aromen. Enorm frisch mit Zug und Spannung und unverkennbarer dichter Mineralität des Vulkangesteins.
Erhältlich um € 19,90 im Online-Shop
The original “Royal Prussian Winegrowing Domaine” was founded in 1902 as a state-run model winery for Riesling. It is notable for its picturesque location above the Nahe River (90 minutes southwest of Frankfurt am Main). Every one of the storied estate’s 30 hectares of vineyard has been classified by the VDP as a GROSSE.LAGE.
Gut Hermannsberg
Vormals Königlich-Preussische Weinbaudomäne
55585 Niederhausen
Germany
