German Pinot’s Pride and Prejudice

It is 12 years ago now that I wrote my Masters of Wine dissertation on the “Emergence of premium German Pinot Noir.” At the time, Spätburgunder was the new kid on the block internationally, had won a few accolades, and started cropping up in international markets. Today, it has made tentative inroads into the cellars of fine wine collectors and is listed in some of the world’s top restaurants. Yet, it still lacks the market punch its sheer acreage would suggest. 

The conclusion I came to in 2012 still seems accurate in 2024: “Germany’s importance as the world’s third-largest Pinot Noir producer is not currently reflected in international markets: there still is an apparent mismatch between growing area and distribution, market penetration and recognition.” It was this mismatch that made me take up my subject and makes me take stock again now.

Shedding historic bias

When German Pinot Noir emerged on the international scene in the first decade of this millennium, it was met with immense prejudice. For good reason: in fine wine circles, Germany was still chiefly associated with its sweet Prädikate, from Kabinett to TBA; at the entry level, it was the home of sweetish plonk and almost nothing in between. But those were different times. 

Even within Germany itself, dry Riesling had only just arrived at respectability. Remember, the first VDP.GGs (Grosse Gewächse) only made their quiet debut in 2002. In 2007, just 11 Pinot Noirs GGs were presented at the organization’s  annual tasting event in Wiesbaden. In August 2024, there were 91 Pinot Noir GGs. 

Nobody thinks twice about buying a German washing machine or car, but they do think twice about
buying German wine.

I remember talking about German Pinot Noir with a wine merchant from a prominent London firm around 2010. He conceded haughtily that yes, there were some Spätburgunders that were actually drinkable, “but when drinkers see the prices, they will swallow hard,” he said. The implication was that it was quite presumptuous of Germany to encroach on that centuries-old sacred ground with its sole occupant: Burgundy. And to ask a decent price for the wine was outrageous. Astonishingly, that man was just a little older than me, that is to say, not a fossilized member of the wine cognoscenti.

Such was the wall of prejudice then. And now?      

Parting the Pinot sea

The findings of my research paper turned out to be wonderfully conclusive. All the historic, quantitative, and qualitative research stacked up neatly to present irrefutable viticultural, oenological, and economic evidence. Yes, there now definitely was a premium segment of German Spätburgunder with a traceable genesis. 

What I was not aware of in 2012, however, was that Germany was part of an altogether larger trend. Until the 1990s, Pinot Noir had a constant and historic, but negligible presence in Germany. Just 2.5% of Germany’s vineyards were planted to Pinot Noir in the 1920s. In 1964, there were just 1,839 hectares of Pinot Noir, or 2.8% of total plantings — and of those, 1,516 were in Baden. Plantings doubled from 5,612 ha (5.5%) in 1990 to 11,334 ha in 2010 (11.5%) and have hovered around that mark ever since. 

While this is dramatic, it chimes with the global phenomenon that is Pinot Noir. In 1990, Pinot Noir ranked at number 30 of the world’s most-planted grape varieties, with 41,539 hectares across the globe; by 2016, it had vaulted to tenth place with 105,480 hectares. The German development is hence part of a wider global trend. 

Context is everything. In 1990, Central Otago had a mere 19 ha of vines (of various varieties), which grew to 244 ha in 1999. Today, there are 1,656 ha of Pinot Noir in Central Otago and 5,613 ha in all of New Zealand. Oregon went from zero Pinot Noir in 1965 to 9,531 ha in 2021. Chile, more recent in the Pinot Noir stakes, went from 138 ha in 1994 to 4,179 ha in 2022.

Plus ça change…

Over the past decade, countless articles have been written, including by yours truly, about the wonder that is German Pinot Noir: its regional diversity, pioneers, stars, and emerging talents. The same stories appeared with that same tenor about Kiwi, South African, Chilean, Oregonian, and Californian Pinot Noir, simply because the world re-discovered restraint, elegance and translucency in red wine and Pinot Noir often fronted that trend — boosted no end of course by the 2004 Sideways phenomenon. Germany is thus in excellent and delicious international company. 

All of these Pinot-producing countries and regions aspire to the hallowed heights of Burgundy. While they try to express their own land, climate, soil, and character through Pinot Noir, they are also (and perhaps too intensely) aware of this particular and singular holy grail. No one will ever catch up with Burgundy’s centuries of reputational lead and cultural identification, fusion of culture, land, and variety, simply because this is where this whole furore started; where Pinot Noir still is taken to its nth degree, be it in viticultural sophistication or pricing.

The devotion once exhibited by the religious communities in the Côte d’Or is now a quasi-religious global movement of which regular libations and even pilgrimages are part and parcel. Amen to that, Hallelujah even. The fact that there is so much global Pinot-aspiration fills me with joy. But the more I think about it, the clearer it becomes why only Burgundy occupies that top spot — notwithstanding the sea of average Burgundy there undoubtedly is. So let us look again at German Pinot Noir.

Fashionably Spät(burgunder)

Taking the temperature with leading importers about German Pinot Noir’s impact reveals that market channels make a big difference. Michael Lykens, German portfolio manager at Skurnik Wines, a New York-based importer and distributor, says that “sommeliers and fine wine retailers have always been the greatest champions. Private clients have always been the most skeptical; many of them have been collecting French and American Pinot Noir for years and it’s more of a battle [for German Pinot Noir].” Jenna Fields, president of The German Wine Collection in California, a longstanding German specialist importer, agrees: “We definitely see more acceptance amongst the restaurant community. Not only is German Pinot Noir amazing value by-the-glass, it also allows the sommelier to create memorable experiences for all the Burgundy drinkers who have never had grand cru Pinot Noir from Germany. Private clients are hesitant because the quality and ageability of Pinot Noir is not yet widely known in the U.S.” Matt Wilkin of UK Burgundy specialist H2Vin, who also represents German Pinot notes: “In the past, we had to initiate the sales, now we get asked. When you put a Pinot offer out, you get traction.” But he also cautions: “In terms of growth, you cannot take your foot off the accelerator, you’ve got to keep pushing.”

It is different for UK specialist importer Sebastian Thomas, owner of Germany- and Burgundy-focused Howard Ripley: “We started importing German Pinot Noir in 2009, with one grower [Editor’s Note: the Baden estate Ziereisen]. Sales were decent to begin with, but it was 2014 before we went large and took on several more,” he says. “Since then, growth has been strong. We now have 13 growers.” That collection today includes such names as Bertram-Baltes, Holger Koch, Battenfeld-Spanier, and Klaus-Peter Keller.

Karl Bachmair, founder of Bachmair Wines in Hong Kong, notes that when he started out in 2012, there was “zero demand” for German Pinot Noir. However, things changed over the past five to six years. There is more openness now in restaurants and from consumers. “Demand appeared,” he says, but stresses that this took years of promotion. German Pinot Noir is still not an easy sell, even if there is optimism and opportunity, as illustrated by Julian Campbell at UK fine wine merchant Justerini & Brooks: “It continues to pick up speed,” he says. “Now we sell out of most of our single-vineyard bottlings on release, to private clients primarily, while restaurants are the primary movers of the village bottlings.”

Price, Placement, Perception

These statements show: price, placement, and perception play a huge role. Thomas notes that “cheaper German Pinot Noirs rushed into the gap left by Bourgogne Rouge when it went stratospheric. The others are still mostly good value for what they are.” Those last four words are key. Bachmair says: “I realized private consumers who had come across German Pinot Noir were always pleasantly surprised — about quality and price, but the preference still is Burgundy, apart from a small minority that has discovered German Pinot Noir as a Burgundy alternative.” The world is full of alternatives, very good and even expensive alternatives — exceptional Pinot Noirs even from other French regions like Loire and Alsace. Yet all lack that historic halo of Burgundy. Paul Wasserman, co-director of U.S. Sales at Becky Wasserman & Co, representing the finest Burgundian domaines in the U.S. as well as some German producers, put it eloquently: “Can German Pinot Noir compete with the greatest Burgundian terroirs made in a style that can age for a century and transform into some of the most compelling red wine in the world? We really don’t know yet,” he says. “The reputational lag will be erased when several decades-old German Pinots bloom into extraordinary bottles just like Burgundy can. There could very well be some old German Pinots that can do this, we just haven’t had the opportunity to taste any.”

“The reputational lag will be erased when several decades-old German Pinots bloom into extraordinary bottles just like Burgundy can…we just haven’t had the opportunity to taste any.”

German Pinot Noir is continuously touted as “better value than Burgundy.” But this argument misses the point in various respects — better value for a provenance of far less prestige? — and ignores the nature of the fine wine market, where wines are expensive, where reputation puts some wines simply “hors catégorie.” Yes, value matters to those who love Pinot Noir and can no longer afford Burgundy or were never able to in the first place. It matters to sommeliers who want to sell great Pinot Noir to those Pinot lovers, but while German Pinot Noir fits that bill, so do other Pinot Noirs from around the globe. Many red Burgundies are indeed overpriced and poor value for money — but some are stellar, and collectors are willing to pay for that. The collectors who love drinking Pinot Noir are more likely to branch out — those who are only after prestige or investment return will stick to Burgundy.

Success lies in a strong foundation

At the other end of the market, namely in general retail, New Zealand, California and Chile have done a far better job at grabbing market share — despite having far less Pinot Noir to sell.

German Pinot Noirs, however, have made limited impact in general retail where they compete against a whole world of wine. What is missing is a broader base of German brands that bring reliable quality at affordable prices. Fine wine reputations are not built on mass market brands, but brands do create a broader awareness and acceptance of a whole category. 

The very people who could change that — namely the numerous co-operatives in Baden who hold sway over a sea of mature Pinot Noir vines — seem to be sleepwalking. They have gone down the road of competitive pricing in a country whose structures are too expensive for that and who barely reach international markets. I want to cry when I see cheap Baden Pinot Noir sold in local supermarkets at dumping prices. This can only be described as systemic and structural failure brought on by decades of sclerotic, parochial thinking. 

There is a place for well-made and delicious, if simple, Pinot Noir that could be a firm feature at the entry and mid-price market internationally: affordable, consistent, and available. Those who do it, like Palataia or Villa Wolf, notably not co-op made, can sell it profitably. Oh, if only I was blessed with entrepreneurial talents…

Still swallowing hard?

While it would be tempting to lay the blame for Germany’s lack of market punch at the feet of ingrained cultural prejudice, it would also be wrong. Nobody thinks twice about buying a German washing machine or car, but they do think twice about buying German wine. Neither has Germany been able to travel piggy-back on its food credentials. While Italian wine travelled with pizza, pasta, and Michelin stars and Spanish wine with tapas, beer steins and an oompah band image still prevail in what pass as German eateries around the world, complete with sausages, sauerkraut, and pork knuckle. 

The collectors who love drinking Pinot Noir are more likely to branch out — those who are only after prestige or investment return will stick to Burgundy.

In professional circles, I am certain that German Pinot Noirs would be scored much higher in blind tastings if juries were told that a Burgundian pirate was in the line-up. By the same token, however, old prejudices recede. Open-minded drinkers do find a certain old-world elegance in German Pinot Noir, appreciating the finesse at the top. But, as one of Germany’s most exacting Pinot-makers said to me this summer: “Much has evolved, but much more still has to happen” in terms of quality. That was Klaus Peter Keller from Rheinhessen, who knows a thing or two about the fine wine market. 

Tasting 91 Pinot Noir GGs in Wiesbaden this summer bore that out — even if there were some wonderful wines among them. Greatness, in both Burgundy and Germany, is not widespread. But Keller and other names, like Rudolf Fürst and Bernhard Huber, also have an international currency that they did not at the beginning of this millennium. So there is progress and there is much improvement, much fine-tuning, much devotion and so much to look forward to. The world of Pinot Noir is richer for it, and so are we drinkers. If I wrote the same dissertation again today, the accumulated evidence would be towering.