Catalogue 2008

catalogue 2008

Mosel Wine Merchant Neustrasse 15 54290 Trier Tel. +49 (0)651 14551-38 Fax +49 (0)651 14551-39 moselwinemerchant.com Text Copyright © 2006 by Lars Carlberg Photographs © 2006 by Tobias Hannemann, fotolino.de

Editor // David Furer Proofreader // Marisa Kristen LaValette I route (sic) for the underdog Chauffeur // Sebastian Graeber (Saab 95 Aero) No matter who they are Like the bankrobber Design // propeller, Trier, propeller.de In the getaway car Printed and bound // Druckerei Steffen, Germany

—Bill Callahan (aka Smog), Text // set in Sabon singer-songwriter Paper // Evergreen (100% chlorine-free bleached paper)

The author wishes to thank Stadtbibliothek/Stadtarchiv Trier for granting permission to reprint Saar und Mosel Weinbau-Karte 1868: Piesport-Dusemond (cover) // Ulrich Stein for permission to reprint the photograph from Bremmer Calmont // David Furer for his expertise and scaling back my rambled intro // Gernot Kollmann for his knowledge and insight // all family and friends for their support.

GAV GmbH Managers // Stefan Löbeth, Alexander Rinke

Mosel Wine Merchant is a trademark of GAV GmbH

Mosel Wine Merchant (MWM) has ensured that all the information in this document is as true and accurate as possible, and assume no liability for misrepresentation, misuse, and/or abuse of any of its products. MWM encourages intelligent and responsible consumption of its wines and other ﬁne beverages containing alcohol.

Stein Riesling vines on Alfer Hölle Porta Nigra, Roman (north) gate in Trier Purpose

Mosel Wine Merchant (MWM) seeks out growers with an artisanal approach of making genuine wines that show their origin, or terroir, to create our portfolio. P History

In the 19th century, Mosel wines were favored and sold for more than the Grand Cru Classés of Bordeaux. The Mosel Valley, however, has more of an affinity with Burgundy with its meticulous vineyard classification and more northerly climate. Many experienced wine drinkers gravitate to red Burgundy and Mosel Riesling as the purest and most complex expressions of the vine. The red grape of Burgundy, Pinot Noir, has traditionally been found along the Mosel and still is today. Its finicky nature makes it a foil for skilled winemaking and great terroir. Riesling, especially in the Mosel, acts more as a mirror for its environment than any other grape variety—even more so than the noble Pinot Noir. The miracle of nature and the hand of man conspire to express Riesling’s potential for complexity and finesse. In both regions, the Napoleonic code divided and sub-divided estates over many generations. Throughout the numerous picturesque Mosel villages one finds many growers with the same surname, reminiscent of Burgundy. Moreover, vineyards were judged and ranked foremost according to their soil and exposition. Although the Mosel has no official grand or premier crus as in the Burgundy’s Côte d’Or, it does have a large number of recognized top-notch sites, many with old ungrafted vines (those with the original European rootstocks) that can produce flavors more striking and concentrated than younger ones.*Sadly, many plots in these privileged vineyard sites now lay fallow. To make some sites more workable, old vines were grubbed up to restructure hillsides, called Flurbereinigung.

Vineyards

The 1971 German Wine Law expanded certain unofﬁcial grand cru vineyards, such as Piesporter Goldtröpfchen while simultaneously creating undistinguished collective sites such as Piesporter Michelsberg that took advantage of renowned place names (the village of Piesport) at the expense of nobler sites (the Goldtröpfchen vineyard). Many excellent Mosel vineyards without a famous village name attached, such as Wintricher Ohligsberg or Kestener Paulinsberg, are ignored or forgotten.

* In the late 19th century, phylloxera, a bug that ruined most European vineyards by attacking the roots of the vine, had a less devastating effect upon its arrival along the Mosel in 1912. Hence many pre-phylloxera vines survived in the steep-slate soils without needing to be grafted on to disease-resistant American rootstocks—the solution after attempts were made with grubbing out or ﬂooding vineyards. (Some vintners continue at their own risk to plant non-grafted vines.) The notion of judging quality based on ripeness (or must weight) of the grapes versus yields and location is a problem traceable to the institutive failure of the 1971 Wine Law. The law also grouped together many old place-names into legally deﬁned Einzellagen (single vineyards), often expanding the core sites (Scharzhofberg, for instance) to incorporate less noble bordering plots of vine. This greatly reduced the number of single vineyards, but also took away subtleties within them.

Kaiserthermen, Roman imperial baths in Trier

“As a young wine merchant you The weathered slate soils of the best Mosel hillside vineyards, other than having the possibility try to help less well-known young of transmitting their minerality through the vines into the grapes, have quantifiable thermal growers to find the right consumers and hydric attributes. Similar to the stony sections in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, they release the and I admire the passion and the stored heat of the day during the evening, making the transition to the often chilly nights more dedication of your work, even if bearable for the grapevine. They also trap below them the moisture for use when drought in some cases, perhaps, our tastes conditions prevail, a more frequent occurrence in recent years. This works, however, only when differ...” the vines planted on these sites are old enough and therefore sufficiently deep-rooted, to reach the water below. —Michel Bettane Formerly, Mosel vintages lacked optimum ripeness in all but the best years. Global warming has changed this, but it has become a serious concern here as elsewhere. Although some wine growers prefer hot vintages, the wines have in turn become alcoholic, at least, for Mosel standards as compared with a decade ago and, if a grower picks early to avoid excess sugar and therefore potential alcohol, he runs the risk of missing out on physiological ripeness. On a positive note, many growers have moved to more natural methods in the vineyard. The French like to use the expression la lutte raisonée, or using chemicals only when necessary. Some German vintners have also shifted to organic winegrowing, including such quality growers as Clemens Busch, to improve the quality of the vine.

Vinification

A long-standing debate among German Riesling connoisseurs has been the use of natural versus cultured yeasts. One now often hears a wine-maker or -taster claim that the wine is spontaneously fermented or has pure culture yeasts (Reinzuchthefen) added. Some have made it their mission to bring this issue out into the open, because wine had become somewhat standardized, a phenomenon attributable to the overuse of added yeasts. Depending on the commercial yeast strain, Riesling growers reluctant to use natural yeasts found only on the grape skins or in the cellar have cleaner, more fruit-forward aromas. But the issue goes far deeper than this. The strict use of cultured yeasts typically entails less risk (no stuck fermentation); the wine-making is frequently more protective, often termed reductive. The wines tend to be clean, usually in a lightly sweet style from an artiﬁcially blocked fermentation. On the other hand, this has overshadowed other important issues such as vineyard care, yields, élevage, and manipulation in the cellar (e.g. must concentration). Wines made naturally with the use of indigenous (“ambient”) yeasts have an earthy nose while retaining a greater textural impression and aftertaste (or, goüt de terroir) than those that inoculate their must with cultured yeasts, which are “correct” but lack dimension. Many use unnecessary clariﬁcations and add must concentrate to their best wines—a perfectly allowable practice under the aforementioned wine law. Minimizing exposure of the wine to oxygen and adding richness and sweetness are common examples of overprotective winemaking.

Style

Another cause for concern is the notion that German wines must be sweet to the taste or have a minimum amount of residual sugar regardless of the corresponding acidity, often in an attempt to appeal to the American consumer. At times the importer influences the grower to add Süssreserve, or sweet reserve (unfermented grape juice) to sweeten his wines. The importer also chooses to avoid carrying well made dry and medium-dry, as his customers have associated Mosel with sweetness. They claim that dry-tasting Mosel wines are an aberration, merely playing to German domestic demand for something drier such as Italian Pinot Grigio. The so-called “classic style” propagated by many has a lightness and balance between sugar and acids. Yet, why can a grower not make a naturally-made dry wine showing its terroir? These have more versatility at the table, especially with savory meals, and have a minerality and complexity often greater than the more famous sweet versions, for they have no residual sugar to coat them and subsequently disguise their true depth. Must Mosel wines be a cliché for a sweet wine requiring consumption only on their own, for dessert, or with Asian food? Before the post-World War II rush to technological efficiency, which brought us petrochemical fertilizers, sterile filtration, added yeasts and enzymes, artificial cooling methods, and centrifuges, traditional Mosel wines typically ended fermentation as dry or off-dry; malolactic fermentations often occurred as the wines rested in casks for several years. Back in the “old days,” spontaneous fermentations and cold cellars would stop the wild yeasts from occasionally eating away at all the sugars, but most finished with a drier style than what one now associates with Mosel wines. The yields were naturally low back then by as much as a fourth of today’s yields. The question then is how we define the term “traditional?” How far back do we want to go—the 1960s, the 1930s, or the 1880s? How about the 18th century? Or ancient Roman times? In the 1960s, the sterile filter made it possible to make the delightful lighter style of Kabinett and Spätlese with higher amounts of residual sugar while remaining stable in bottle. Without its use, these wines could not exist. We at Mosel Wine Merchant trust that you will recognize the differences and alternatives we bring to the market; namely, non-interventionist wine-making along with accentuating terroir over a sweet/sour character.

Trier, Germany Lars Carlberg, Mosel Wine Merchant “I have enjoyed tasting for the ﬁrst time this year with a number of the growers whom Lars Carlberg represents, and I look forward to reporting on them in upcoming issues of The Wine Advocate. The presence of these growers in the U.S. market will add to Americans’ appreciation of the stylistic diversity of Mosel Riesling as well as of the restoration that so many unjustly forgotten vineyards and their reputation are undergoing at the hands of a fanatically dedicated few.”

—David Schildknecht, The Wine Advocate

The ﬁrst-class and steep-terraced Winninger Röttgen. Vintages

2006 Many wines made from over-ripe grapes affected by noble rot, hence few dry wines. A Vwet August followed drought conditions in July, although a sunny September brightened the growers’ outlook. Harvesting took place around mid-October (some picked earlier, others into November), under mostly azure skies. Gray rot had to be sorted out by most growers.

2005 After an average summer came a wonderful ﬁnale. An Indian summer brought a large quantity of late-harvest wines, those affected by Edelfäule (noble rot)—the most since the legendary 1976 vintage. Also provided clear and structured dry wines, if extreme and careful selection took place during harvest. Their depth is impressive.

2004 Many wines picked too early, growers afraid to wait for physiological maturity. A vintage for risk-taking domaines—harvesting late provided brilliant minerality, depth and longevity. Remarkably clear-cut (structured) noble sweet wines, too.

2003 An extremely hot and atypical vintage affected the grapes, very ripe with mild acidity. Most well-known estates acidiﬁed sometimes resulting in poor wines. The best growers achieved balance between minerality and natural fullness. Deep and concentrated wines.

2002 Although a rainy vintage towards the end, many of the best growers achieved perfect physiological ripeness and no over-maturity. Hence, good integrated acidity. The nose on many of the top examples have a deep fruit extract despite the wet autumn. Good longevity from those domaines that practiced low yields.

Table 1 // French ranking of Mosel vineyards in 1804 // 10 grades by village and repurchase price

Grade Name of the village Price in francs/1000 l 1 Dusemond (Brauneberg) 172 2 Piesport, Wehlen, Machern, Graach, Zeltingen, Erden, Lösenich 150 3 Niederremmel, Müstert, Reinsport, Berncastel, Grünhaus, Kesten, Oberemmel, Minheim 140 4 Kous (Cues), Lieser, Winterich, Ürzig, Kröf, Köwerich, Mülheim, Thron, Kinheim, Kindel, Wolf, Kasel, 129 St. Matthias, Okfen, Kastel, Staadt, Neumagen 5 Trittenheim, Mehring, Monzel, Waltrach, Isselbach, Konz 118 6 Rachtig, Awelsbach, Mertesdorf, Veldenz, Thörnich, Reul, Maring, Burgen, Olewig, Krutweiler, Ayl, 107 Bibelhausen, Irsch/Saar 7 Pfalzel, Pichter, Merzlich, Niederleuken, Klüsserath, Wawern, Pölich, Köwerich, Platten, Filzen/Mosel, 96 Neudorf, Trier, Hamm, Komlingen, Nennig, Mies, Helfand, Detzem, Schweich, Longen, Lörsch, Ensch, Longuich, Osan 8 Niedermennig, Leiwen, Schleich, Fell, Löwenbrück, Kreutz, Kürenz, Feyen, Palzem, Rölingen, Fasterau, 86 Beurig, Perl, Sendorf 9 Wittlich, Andel, Pallien, Erang, Metzdorf, Euren, Zewen, Oberkirch, Monaise, Niederkirch, Ruwer, 75 Pellingen, Irsch-Olewig, Kenn, Feilz, Plein, Luxem, Kernscheid, Issel, Bekond, Hetzrath, Rivenich, Riol

10 Bengel, Springirsbach, Korlingen, Drees, Bergweiler, Hupperat, Flusbach, Bausendorf, Olkenbach 64

According to Heger (1905) Growers Weingut Reinhard und Beate Knebel Beate Knebel has kept her late husband’s style intact while improving quality even more with the assistance of Gernot Kollmann (ex-winemaker at Van Volxem). They make top-ﬂight wines both in the drier style as well as nobly sweet. They all reﬂect their place of origin, namely the steep-terraced Terrassenmosel near Koblenz, where the micro-climate often is the hottest in the region.

Wein-Erbhof Stein Makers of racy Riesling wines, the brothers Stein believe in low yields and purity of fruit. Their top single-vineyard wines ferment for the most part spontaneously at their own pace and age in old Fuder. Their respect for terroir is evident in their wines.

“[U.S. importers and distributors are] Weingut Clemens Busch Clemens Busch creates terroir-driven wines made with an attention missing out by ignoring lesser known, to detail and an open mind. His overlooked Pündericher Marienburg is bottled according to but equally fascinating estates from the old sub-plot designations and should not be ignored. He makes some of the best off-dry Mosel.” wines—true vins de garde. —Joel Payne, Gault Millau and International Wine Cellar Weingut Günther Steinmetz Stefan Steinmetz took over from his father in 1999 and now makes some of the most underrated and authentic wines along the Mosel. From the renowned Brauneberger Juffer, his Rieslings have plenty of depth and substance eked out of low yields, long fermentation on the ﬁne lees in old Fuder, and minimal intervention. The price-quality Grapport is tops!

Weingut Später-Veit Opulent wines made from the famed weathered clayey-slate of Piesporter Goldtröpfchen. Owner Heinz Welter is amongst insiders one of the top growers in this historic village. His Riesling wines ferment in stainless-steel tanks followed by an upbringing in traditional Fuder to round them out.

Weingut Moritz Gogrewe Our only Saar domaine, Moritz Gogrewe makes hand-crafted wines aged in used wooden casks from a miniscule holding of under 2 hectares on his top steep-slate site in the Oberemmeler Altenberg, neighbor to the world famous Scharzhofberg. The style is typical Saar: steely acidity with a good balancing overlay of fruit—an up-and- coming grower to watch.

Weingut Erben von Beulwitz Quintessential Ruwer, the wines from von Beulwitz best express this tributary in the classic delicate vein with some residual sugar. Highly recommended for fans of this style, especially from his steep single-vineyard Kaseler Nies’chen, without question one of the best sites in the Ruwer Valley.

Dominikaner-Weingut von Nell This estate still turns out wonderful sparkling wines in a traditional style made famous during the latter half of the 19th century. Their Ruwer Riesling with its natural higher acidity makes for very good Sekt, either as brut or halbtrocken (medium-dry). The base wine comes primarily from the blue-slate monopole site of Kaseler Dominikanerberg. Weingut Reinhard und Beate Knebel

Vineyard area: 6.5 hectares Today, Beate Knebel runs the 6.5-ha (16-acre) domaine with the help of two loyal, long-term Top sites: Winninger Uhlen, Röttgen, employees from Poland and freelance consultant Gernot Kollmann as cellar master. He has a Brückstück and Hamm relaxed, hands-off approach by letting the wines make themselves with neither fining agents Soil types: red and blue slate; nor additives such as enzymes. hard sandstone elements in Uhlen Yields are controlled through green-harvesting in order to make substantial dry or medium- dry wines. When the grapes come to the winery, they fall through a destemmer-crusher for a light crushing. Gernot encourages some pre-fermentation oxidation in order to extract aroma from the grape skins. Then the grapes are gravity-fed into a pneumatic press to receive a gentle pressing. He has gradually put his mark on the wines by doing skin contact, eschewing added yeasts, and allowing slow fermentations on the fine lees in stainless-steel vats. Although most of the wines are made dry and off-dry, Beate has a knack and an attention to detail for making noble sweet wines, too. Grapes with botrytis cinerea or “noble rot” are Weingut Reinhard und Beate Knebel carefully hand picked and sorted with the greatest of care. August-Horch-Straße 24 If one has vertigo, it might be wise to avoid walking up the steep-terraced vineyards that 56333 Winningen surround the village. The Winninger Uhlen and Röttgen are the two most famous vineyards. weingut-knebel.de The soil at Uhlen consists of a conglomeration of hard sandstone with red and blue slate, and Röttgen offers a more open wine with its soil of well-weathered blue slate. Hamm straddles one end of the Uhlen; whereas, Brückstück has a mixture of blue slate and sandstone, like its neighbor Röttgen. One finds monorails up and down the Mosel, but they are especially preva- lent on this area known as the Terrassenmosel. The rail carries workers and supplies up the hill to make the cost of labor affordable and the workload easier. Wein-Erbhof Stein

Dr. Ulrich Stein and his brother, Peter, have a total of 5 ha (12.4 acres) exclusively on steep-slate Vineyard area: 5 hectares hillsides near the village of Bullay. Ulrich works more in the cellar; Peter prefers the vineyard Top sites: Bremmer Calmont, St. whose residents average thirty years old. All the Riesling vines here, such as St. Aldegunder Aldegunder Palmberg-Terrassen and Palmberg-Terrassen and Alfer Hölle (a monopole site), are planted with ungrafted rootstocks. Alfer Hölle The latter consists of a “fatter” soil on deeper weathered slate that has plenty of water reserves; Soil types: gray-blue Hunsrück slate whereas, Palmberg-Terrassen has blue slate on terraces. In addition to using their own grapes, the Steins buy grapes from growers who work in top sites according to the Steins’ quality criteria. These include Bremmer Calmont (at 380 meters high and 68° incline one of the steepest vineyards in Europe) and Erdener Treppchen. For many years now, they lowered yields and applied ecologically sound vineyard practices in avoiding artiﬁcial fertilizers and herbicides. After picking the grapes, they are brought to the cellar and carefully destemmed, followed by a pre-fermentation skin contact of one to ten hours. Subsequently, the grapes drop into a pneumatic press. Except for simpler summer wines, Wein-Erbhof Stein most Riesling juice is fermented at the onset spontaneously. Settling occurs naturally, without Brautrockstraße 40 additives, before being transferred for aging on the ﬁne lees mostly in 1000-liter Fuder. They 56859 Bullay/Mosel want to turn out slender, racy, and delicate wines in a dry and medium-dry style with good stein-weine.de acidity and relatively low alcohol. “We’re against overly mechanized vineyard care,” explains Ulli, “on our steep sites handwork is not a necessary problem, rather it allows us to have an intensive contact with the vine.” They want to know the characteristics and peculiarities of each and every vine so that they can turn grapes into wine using respect and knowledge. Weingut Clemens Busch

Vineyard area: 9.5 hectares Clemens and Rita Busch have been growing organically since 1985. They live near the banks Top site: Pündericher Marienburg of the Mosel in a restored half-timbered house built in 1663. Because ﬂooding can occur here, Soil types: stony-slate (red, gray the cellar lies on higher ground at his nearby parents’ home. and blue); sand and clay mixed in. His 9.5 ha (23.5 acres) lie mostly in the Pündericher Marienburg, a stony-slate soil with a bit of sandy clay. He ferments in both stainless steel and neutral wood with aging taking place in oak Fuder. His wines embrace dry to off-dry styles—true vins de garde.

Clemens works according to individual sites that have different slate soils. The Fahrlay subplot consists mostly of blue slate. Falkenlay has gray with patches of red slate. It is one of the top sites in Pünderich and often used for making sweet Auslese wines. One of their oldest parcels is the Weissenberg, which has sixty-year-old vines on weathered-red slate that produces spicy Weingut Clemens Busch wines. Busch’s favorite site is the Felsterrasse with ﬁfty-year-old vines on light-gray slate, making Kirchstraße 37 wines with a combination of ﬁnesse and minerality, which require patience for enjoyment. 56862 Pünderich Working according to site, harvesting low yields, plowing, and avoiding fungicides and clemens-busch.de herbicides helps bring the minerality and individuality of the vineyard to the fore. He prefers the notion of sense of place. Instead of doing a pre-fermentation skin contact for the 2005 vintage, Clemens gently pressed the grapes for a long time followed by lees contact to achieve greater complexity until an initial racking. He ferments slowly with wild yeasts, a rare thing amongst the more established estates. In most cases he refuses to use the nomenclature halbtrocken or feinherb to indicate a medium dry style, because the balance between acidity and residual sugar creates the impression of dryness on the palate. Weingut Günther Steinmetz

Stefan Steinmetz, the younger of two sons, took over the 5.8-ha (14.3-acre) domaine from his Vineyard area: 5.8 hectares father in 1999. The Renaissance slate house lies on the main thoroughfare and underneath the Top sites: Brauneberger Juffer, ancient vaulted cellar (1563) offers a perfect place for Stefan to handcraft his Riesling wines Kestener Paulinsberg and in old 1000-liter Moselfuder. Mühlheimer Sonnenlay His vineyards include the famous Brauneberger Juffer, as well as underappreciated sites such Soil types: well-drained Devonian slate as Mühlheimer Sonnenlay and Kestener Paulinsberg. The grapes for his “Alte Reben” (old (gray and brown) vines) come from two ungrafted parcels in the Mühlheimer Sonnenlay. The Juffer with its old subplots ranked among the greatest crus during Napoleon’s reign on the Mosel. In fact, the Napoleonic classiﬁcation from 1804 rates Dusemond tops (see table). In 1788, Thomas Jefferson rated the (bone-dry) wines of Brauneberg as his favorite. In the Juffer, Stefan holds four parcels, two plots at the foot of the hill, less prone to drought; the other two lie higher up on steeper ground. “The Juffer gives uniquely spicy wines with great minerality,” explains Stefan, “they have opulence as well as structure.” Weingut Günther Steinmetz He prefers wire-trained vines, converting his older plots to this method by removing every Moselweinstraße 154 second row, providing the vines with more air and greater opportunity for photosynthesis, 54472 Brauneberg and fewer bunches per branch. He applies natural compost and stopped using insecticides weingut-guenther-steinmetz.de twenty-ﬁve years ago. “Wine-growing is a way of life, not a job,” states Stefan. Walking with him through his various parcels, one notices his intimate knowledge as well as healthy vines and soils—a prerequisite for making top-class wines. When the grapes reach the cellar, Stefan forks them into the destemmer-crusher for a gentle crushing. Afterward, they drop into a pneumatic press and the resulting juice receives intentional contact with air. The Riesling wines ferment without outside yeasts and on their lees for roughly half a year in Fuder. Weingut Später-Veit

Vineyard area: 7.2 hectares Heinz and Silvia Welter have 7.2 ha (17.8 acres) in and around Piesport with the majority on Top sites: Piesporter Goldtröpfchen steep slopes. The domaine-bottled wines come from top sites such as Piesporter Goldtröpfchen, and Domherr; Wintricher Ohligsberg Domherr, and Wintricher Ohligsberg. Soil types: clayey Devonian- The dominating feature of the Piesport vineyards is their clayey Devonian-weathered slate weathered slate; very stoney in that gives for the Mosel a relatively strong, almost opulent wine even in dry years. Ohligsberg The amphitheater-shaped Piesporter Goldtröpfchen has always been grand. Descending down the newly paved road that weaves through the steep vineyard, one has an incredible view of the village and the surrounding countryside. Although Goldtröpfchen was expanded after the 1971 German Wine Law, only the section from the foot of the hill to about mid-slope is considered a part of this cru. Its south-facing vineyard has deep clayey slate soils before reaching rock. “Lots of underground springs run throughout it,” says Herr Welter. He prefers spontaneous fermentations and chooses to put the wines in stainless steel followed by a short period in Fuder before bottling. The touch of wood helps settle the wines and gives them some Weingut Später-Veit roundness. Brückenstraße 13 The fully south-facing Piesporter Domherr lies on the foot of the slope, between the 54498 Piesport/Mosel village area of Ferres and the old part of Piesport. The Riesling from this core site brings spaeter-veit.com good aromatics and full body. Their vineyard mix also includes the often overlooked wines of Wintricher Ohligsberg, a stony slate-soil vineyard on terraces, which makes for delicate wines. The Welters’ prune their small plot of old vines on wooden stakes in the traditional heart- shaped fashion. The vines produce small grapes that make for aromatic and ﬁne wines. Among insiders this domaine is one of the best kept secrets along the Middle Mosel, producing traditional wines for a song. Do not let the whimsical label fool you—these are serious wines. Weingut Moritz Gogrewe

Moritz Gogrewe, who comes from the Eifel, has slowly pieced together small plots of land Vineyard area: 1.5 hectares while trying to make ends meet. Top sites: Oberemmeler Altenberg His lifestyle reﬂects his hand-to-mouth existence with neither outside investors to back him and Wiltinger Klosterberg nor loans from the bank. He has an independent and outdoorsy spirit, working his steep Soil types: weathered Devonian slate vineyards all by hand. Expensive tools and machines are borrowed from fellow growers. He holds a total of 1.5 ha (3.7 acres) located mostly in Oberemmeler Altenberg, which lies nestled in an idyllic side valley protected by woods from the easterly cold winds blowing off the Hunsrück hills. Altenberg has a similar exposition to its more famous neighbor Scharzhofberg with south- to southeast-facing slopes. “The east exposition gets the morning sun, an advantage for drying out morning dew,” says Moritz. Riesling is divided into separate parcels spread out over the entire Altenberg. The majority are trained in the old method by wooden stakes. He leases most of his plots from now retired septuagenarian growers for a case of wine in return. Moritz is always debating whether to take on more land, hence responsibility. He wants to remain a one-man show. Weingut Moritz Gogrewe His holdings in Wiltinger Klosterberg lie in two separate parcels, Fallsgärtchen and Kelterberg. Kirchstraße 38 His wines are made in the vineyard; the cellar work tends toward laissez-faire, like the man 54329 Konz-Oberemmel himself, hence trying to let the wines make themselves with little intervention. He uses an old spinning press, then fermentation and ageing in used casks of various sizes. Following the harvest, the wines rest from November to June on their ﬁne lees before being bottled. Weingut Erben von Beulwitz

Vineyard area: 6.2 hectares Herbert Weis, who took over this long-standing domaine with hotel in 1982, holds a total of Top site: Kaseler Nies’chen 6.2 ha (15.3 acres) in the Ruwer Valley. “[He] has long been crafting Ruwer Rieslings worthy Soil types: weathered Devonian of serious attention,” wrote David Schildknecht in The Wine Advocate. His top sites lie in slate (red) Kaseler Nies’chen and Kehrnagel, in addition to Kaseler Hitzlay and Eitelsbacher Marienholz. The soil is typical weathered slate and all sites face south or south-southwest. The vineyard is planted to 90% Riesling. Eighty percent of the vines in his top site of Nies’chen, on stony red slate, are ungrafted with some over a century old. Although requiring more work and producing lower yields, Herr Weis opts to keep the old vines in shape without resorting to the use of herbicides. Weingut von Beulwitz wines received medals as early as the Paris World Fair in 1867. Top quality continues to be produced here under Weis. “In this form, this estate belongs to the top class along the Ruwer,” according to Germany’s Gault Millau wine guide. Weingut Erben von Beulwitz The expatriate wine critic Joel Payne, who writes for both Gault Millau and Stephen Tanzer’s Eitelsbacher Straße 4 International Wine Cellar explains: 54318 Mertesdorf von-beulwitz.de Often overlooked by consumers who know only Karthäuserhof or von Schubert, his wines remain very reasonably priced. And, given the fact that the Alte Reben are hand- picked from ungrafted hundred-year-old vines, they are truly bargains.

His Kaseler Nies’chen, with its identiﬁable cassis undertones, deserves to be recognized as a gem. Herr Weis ferments using mostly cultured yeasts in a newly built cellar. Aging takes place in stainless steel.

Dominikaner-Weingut Christoph von Nell

The old Dominican wine estate von Nell lies nestled in the Ruwer Valley, where Ingeborg and Vineyard area: 7 hectares Christoph von Nell-Breuning have been at the estate since their wedding in 1970. The estate Top sites: Kaseler Dominikanerberg was founded in 1700 with old letters describing battles and smuggling wine. Their family arms and Kaseler Nies’chen depicted on the label dates from 1709. Soil types: weathered blue Devonian Christoph’s grandfather, Dr. Arthur von Nell, was one of the founding members of the slate organization called Der große Ring, famous for its annual wine tastings and auctions in Trier. His wife, Bernanda von Nell (née von Breuning), came from an old Bonn family that enjoyed the regular visits of the young Ludwig van Beethoven, who gave piano lessons to his peers Eleonore and Stefan von Breuning. The family’s summer house in Bad Neuenahr today is known as “Beethovenhaus.” The childhood friendship would last until van Beethoven’s death in 1827. Their 7-ha (17.3-acre) holdings ﬂanking the village of Kasel include sole ownership (Alleinbesitz) of the Kaseler Dominikanerberg, a south-facing site on Devonian blue slate, and Dominikaner-Weingut a part of the top site of Kaseler Nies’chen. Christoph von Nell Bahnhofstraße 37 (Ruwertalstraße) Besides their still wines, von Nell—the oldest sparkling wine manufacturer in the Ruwer 54317 Kasel Valley—makes racy Sekt using the traditional champagne method (méthode champenoise) of weingut-von-nell.de provoking a second fermentation in bottle and carefully riddling by hand from pupitres, the special racks that hold the bottles at an angle to allow sediment to slide down into the neck for its later removal, called disgorgement. This traditional method had its height in the latter half of the 19th century; whereas today most sparkling wines in Germany are made using the cheaper, less labor-intensive tank method, a process that entails provoking the second fermentation of the base wine in a pressure tank. The Ruwer grapes with their naturally higher acidity make the basis for good sparkling wine. Glossary

Alte Reben Literally, old vines, in French called vieilles vignes. An old vine differs according to vintner, usually 30-years plus, some as old as 100 years on sites such as Kaseler Nies’chen. Auslese Literally “selected harvest” from grapes picked at (high) minimum legal must weights. Cru The French term for “growth,” or a top-flight vineyard. In German called Gewächs. Einzellage An individual single vineyard such as Piesporter Goldtröpfchen. The number of single vineyards was greatly reduced after the 1971 German Wine Law. Élevage The French term for raising of the young wine in barrel or tank after fermentation; in German called GWeinausbau. Fass Cask. Feinherb A non-legal term meaning medium-dry. Flurbereinigung Controversial remodeling of the vineyards to reduce labor costs and simplify cultivation of the vineyards by restructuring the surface area and building roads in the hillside. Usually entails grubbing up old vines and laying down asphalt. Fuder The traditional Mosel cask of approximately 1,000 liters, used for fermenting or maturing wine or both. Halbtrocken Medium-dry. Lees The sediment at the bottom of casks or tanks made up of spent yeasts and tartrates after fermentation. Ageing on fine lees (or lees contact) gives complexity of flavor. Noble Rot Also known as botrytis cinerea, in German called Edelfäule, is a fungus that attacks ripe, healthy white grapes, concentrating them and resulting in extremely sweet wines. Unwanted as regards red grapes. Reductive Winemaking Protective winemaking that usually entails using cultured yeasts and early doses of sulfur dioxide to minimize contact with air. The opposite of non-intervention winemaking. Reinzuchthefen Pure culture yeasts. Used by growers afraid of risk, hence stuck fermentations. Sekt Sparkling wine. Spätlese Literally “late harvest” from grapes picked late in the season; can be fermented dry, off-dry or sweet. Spontangärung German tasting term for wines made by spontaneous fermentation versus wines inoculated by cultured yeasts. The former has an earthiness versus the cleaner fruit-forward smells of selected yeasts. Terroir The French term for the origin of the wine—a combination of place, soil and microclimate. Trocken German for “dry.” Cannot be more than 9 grams of residual sugar per liter. Weingut Wine estate.

“One of the frustrating aspects of German wines has been that there are small estates throughout the German wine regions that are known to the most fanatic of German wine followers to produce wines of outstanding and even great quality but that have yet to make inroads in the U.S. because three major importers have dominated the market; the introduction of these producers awaits the warmest of greetings from German wine fans.”

–Claude Kolm, Fine Wine Review catalogue 2008

—Bill Callahan (aka Smog), Text // set in Sabon singer-songwriter Paper // Evergreen (100% chlorine-free bleached paper)

GAV GmbH Managers // Stefan Löbeth, Alexander Rinke

Mosel Wine Merchant is a trademark of GAV GmbH

Stein Riesling vines on Alfer Hölle Porta Nigra, Roman (north) gate in Trier catalogue 2008

Mosel Wine Merchant Neustrasse 15 54290 Trier Tel. +49 (0)651 14551-38 Fax +49 (0)651 14551-39 moselwinemerchant.com