Franken Casks the First Stone
Weingut Meintzinger, limestone casks photo credit: Rolf Nachbar
Silvaner aged in shell limestone casks: quintessential expression of terroir, steinwein 2.0, or a flight of foolishness?
Similar Posts
Germany · Alto Adige · Austria · Switzerland
He Who Controls the Spice Controls the Universe
Picture yourself at a German holiday market (if such things were happening in 2020) — a mug of glühwein in hand and the scent of fresh pfeffernuss cookies in the air. It’s no surprise that these warm, spicy aromas are key attributes in many wines from Germany and Austria, South Tyrol, and the German-speaking parts of Switzerland. And there’s a hidden world of compounds and precursors to thank for this distinctive and alluring range. Much like a chef in the kitchen, growers can influence the aromatic and flavor complexity of their wines by playing with soil type, exposition, vine age,…...
Germany · Baden · Pfalz · Rheinhessen · Tasting Article
On the Way to German Chardonnay 2.0
German Chardonnay may be the most thrilling wine for our moment.
Wine at the 51st Parallel in Saale-Unstrut
Trink Magazine | That viticulture is still possible in Germany's Saale-Unstrut in an age of climate crisis is due to the microclimate of the valleys and the perseverance of its growers.
Rainer Zierock: Visionary Provocateur
If Emilio Zierock finds it hard to talk about his controversial father, you can’t tell by listening to him. He speaks with remarkable openness about the man. Rainer Zierock, who passed away in 2009, was a brilliant visionary, but also in all likelihood the grandest provocateur in post-war German and Italian viticulture. The powerfully eloquent and often choleric Zierock was considered an eccentric of note, and one who went after everyone. More than a few people also consider him a misunderstood genius, far ahead of his time. His influence on the young wine generation, and particularly the natural wine scene,…...
Letter to My Younger Somm Self
Don’t let anyone tell you those rocks are a waste of time. Twenty-five years from now, sitting in a Koblenz classroom on your first day of wine school, you will be grateful for each and every one of them. Because there in the heart of German wine country, those stones and their secrets — though you don’t know it yet — will be the foundation keeping you steady among your more experienced classmates, those vintners’ sons and daughters who boast seven, ten, 15 generations in the business, and counting. All while you are still trying to locate the Mosel on…...
Journey to the Center of the Mosel: a Nordic Perspective
How a former chef's trip from the Norwegian Fjords to Germany's Mosel valley took wine appreciation to the next level.