RoterfadenPinot Noir (750ml)

Olympia and Hannes are Roterfaden. They started in 2014 with half a hectare of Lemberger from a parcel planted by Hannes’ grandfather. They have now grown to about four hectares while working organic and certified Bio-dynamic, making their own teas and extracts. Everything is done by hand; the vineyards are beautiful, stunning even, an ancient, terraced amphitheater surrounding a tiny village. I don’t know how else to describe it.

The 2022 vintage of this wine marks something of a breakout, there are any number of people, from the Mosel through the Rheinhessen and beyond, many of them very famous winemakers, calling 2022 the greatest vintage ever for Pinot Noir in Germany.

There are a few reasons why people are suggesting this. First, well, the weather was good for red wine. It was warm, it was dry. Germany, a rather northern haunt, is often wet; this is tough for red wine and red wine harvests. Second – and I think at the moment this is the more prescient factor – is that the Germans were in 2022 ready to produce absolutely stunning Pinot Noir, in a way they just weren’t able to (whether because of clonal selections, raw materials in the cellar, courage and confidence?) even five or ten years ago. If they understood 90% of Pinot Noir ten years ago, they now understand 97%… and these final degrees, the difference between good to very good to great, are wildly important. The difference between good and great is measured by the most delicate touches, slight adaptations in the vineyard, refinements to the pressing and élevage, a certain feel.

What does this all mean for Roterfaden? In 2022 this is 10.5% alcohol and yet still carries the savory references that the Lembergers make sinewy and rustic. If the Lembergers are Northern Rhone, this carries some references to the Jura in the purity and freshness of this nearly Alpine red.