Moritz KissingerWinzersekt (750ml)

Kissinger first came to collector’s attention when none other than Klaus Peter Keller raved about a bottle of his Chardonnay. Since then, his scarce releases have become something of a phenomenon – Chardonnays, Sauvignon Blancs, Weissburgunders, and, yes, Riesling all from the cold, limestone-riddled center of the Rheinhessen. Yet it could be that Moritz’s true love is sparkling wine. He has spent a lot of time in Champagne. Here we have Kissinger’s “Winzersekt No. 2” – only his second-ever “Winzersekt” bottling, a homage to a more direct expression of sparkling wine.

This year we have a 1/3 blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Blanc. The bottling has fine layers of nervy citrus and stone fruit, a tensile backbone of minerals, and dusty herbs. As with great Champagne, the dizzying quality is both precision and an almost airy expansiveness. Having said this, we should point out that one of the most compelling qualities is that Kissinger’s sparkling is that it is not Champagne.