Stein Badischer Landwein 2022

A Pinot Noir that expresses its origin through stone and spice rather than opulence. Marco Pfliehinger and Uwe Lange describe their wines as headstrong and stubborn.

The Steinsatz vineyard, renamed Stein by the winery for wine-law reasons, is an old Pinot Noir site in Rauenberg in the Kraichgau. The soil formation belongs to the Keuper: red clay rock combined with limestone occurring as dolomite. The soil is extremely stony and rich in pebbles. The hard dolomite weathers only very slowly, while the clay layers it contains are mineral-rich and reliably nourish the vines.

Pinot Noir, known as Spätburgunder in Baden. The whole clusters go into small wooden vats, are briefly foot-trodden, and ferment on the skins for around three weeks with moderate pigeage. Pressing takes place in an old basket press, with the must drawn off via the broquereau by gravity. Ageing takes place exclusively in used wooden barrels, mainly barriques and pièces. No yeasts, no enzymes, no fining, no filtration, maximum 30 mg sulphur depending on the vintage.

On the nose, juicy black cherries, blackberries, dark plum compote and high-percentage dark chocolate, underscored by clove, cinnamon, anise and cardamom, as well as a smoky, mineral note. On the palate, concentrated, with deep fruit, mineral finesse and grip. A wine that calls for a cuisine of concentrated sauces and sides full of intensity.

Since 2015, Uwe Lange, formerly a musician, and soil scientist Marco Pfliehinger have been making wine in St. Leon-Rot. The 2.5 hectares are cultivated entirely by hand, following biodynamic principles, with spontaneous fermentation and spontaneous malolactic fermentation. The cellar is housed in a 17th-century vault, the former village smithy. There are no pumps, filters or tractors — bottling is done by gravity and hose, corking by hand.