Engel Badischer Landwein 2022

Deep garnet red with delicate lightening towards the rim. A Pinot Noir that is both dense and taut: dark fruit, fine minerality and a savoury edge that keeps the wine lively.

The wine comes from the uppermost, unconsolidated part of the Engelsfelsen vineyard in the Bühlertal; for wine law reasons it is now called Engel. At 75 degrees, the slope is considered one of the steepest in Europe, accessible only via narrow paths. The soils are very poor and shallow with granite outcrops, and the terraces lie at 350 metres. The vineyard faces south and opens towards the Black Forest, from which cool air flows into the valley in the evenings. The large temperature differences between day and night explain the wine's intense fruit.

Pinot Noir, depending on the vintage either partially destemmed or fermented as whole clusters. Lightly foot-trodden in small wooden vats, fermented on the skins for around three weeks with moderate pigeage, then pressed on an old basket press, with the juice drawn off by gravity through the broquereau. Ageing took place exclusively in used wooden barrels, mainly barriques and pièces. No yeasts, no enzymes, no fining, no filtration, a maximum of 30 mg of sulphur.

On the nose, plums, blackberries and dark sour cherries, alongside violets and elderflower, underpinned by notes reminiscent of tea and mocha. On the palate, dense and fruit-driven, almost sweet yet savoury at the same time, carried by finesse and minerality.

An umami wine, a fitting companion to cuisine with Asian influences.

Marco Pfliehinger and Uwe Lange have been making wine since 2015 in St. Leon-Rot, in the vaulted cellar of a 17th-century village smithy. They work their 2.5 hectares entirely by hand according to biodynamic principles, without pumps, filters or tractors.