Weissburgunder GG Monopol 2023

A Grand Cru that reads Weissburgunder in an austere, reductive style: nutty and herbal aromas up front, the fruit set well back, with an acid backbone that carries the entire wine. Lean power rather than fullness, a modern reductive elegance.

The monopole vineyard Wachenheimer Odinstal sits 350 metres above the Rhine valley, a hollow enclosed by ten hectares of mixed forest with no viticultural neighbours. Across five hectares, basalt, shell limestone, Keuper marl and yellow variegated sandstone lie side by side; the vines for this wine are rooted in Keuper marl and basalt. At this cool elevation, the grapes ripen around 20 days later than in the valley.

Weissburgunder, planted in 1988 and 2004, harvested from 2 to 6 October 2023. 60 percent of the batch fermented spontaneously in used oak barrels, with malolactic fermentation permitted; 40 percent in steel tank. 5 percent was processed as whole clusters and macerated on skins for seven months. After the first blending, the wine spent a second year on full lees in steel tank.

Grippy and phenolic in structure, with an acidity that is unusually high and tapering for a Weissburgunder. Hazelnut and green walnut carry on from the nose, interwoven with sage and tarragon; delicate bitter notes and a fine tannic structure provide resistance. The finish stays light-footed and inviting.

Pan-seared turbot with almond butter, risotto with green asparagus and lemon thyme, chicken with tarragon or Comté.

Demeter-certified since 2013, with the logo shown on the label. Estate manager Andreas Schumann works in the cellar according to the principle of non-intervention: spontaneous fermentation without temperature control, extended lees ageing, minimal use of sulphur. Five suckler cows graze between the vine rows; the VDP estate operates as a closed organism under Demeter biodynamic guidelines.