2012 GANTENBEIN Chardonnay Switzerland - a worldclass Chardonnay

Martin_Zwick · October 2, 2019, 7:19am

“It’s sort of Burgundian, but also sort of different, and it’s completely compelling." Jamie Goode

„Wenn Du es gut machen willst, musst Du alle Besseren kennen – und getrunken haben.“ Gantenbein

"Wir lieben die Mineralität grosser Chablis, die fruchtige, schmelzige Kraft weisser Burgunder und unseren Chardonnay, der beides vereint.“ Gantenbein

2012 GANTENBEIN Chardonnay Switzerland

"Gantenbein is a small producer in eastern Switzerland, at the end of the Rhine. Their 6 hectares of vines are planted at 500 m in the foothills of the northern Alps, in the Graubünden (Grisons) appellation. Most is Pinot Noir, but they also have some Chardonnay.“

Intoxicating perfume of butter biscuits. On the palate a mix of melt&delicate minerality and a beneficial acidity gives freshness&drinking pleasure to the wine. Admirable elegant, linear and profound this Swiss Chardonnay. No hurry, good years ahead.

95/100

Cheers,
Martin

TomHill · October 2, 2019, 12:02pm

“It’s sort of Burgundian, but also sort of different, and it’s completely compelling." Jamie Goode

„Wenn Du es gut machen willst, musst Du alle Besseren kennen – und getrunken haben.“ Gantenbein

"Wir lieben die Mineralität grosser Chablis, die fruchtige, schmelzige Kraft weisser Burgunder und unseren Chardonnay, der beides vereint.“ Gantenbein

2012 GANTENBEIN Chardonnay Switzerland

"Gantenbein is a small producer in eastern Switzerland, at the end of the Rhine. Their 6 hectares of vines are planted at 500 m in the foothills of the northern Alps, in the Graubünden (Grisons) appellation. Most is Pinot Noir, but they also have some Chardonnay.“

Intoxicating perfume of butter biscuits. On the palate a mix of melt&delicate minerality and a beneficial acidity gives freshness&drinking pleasure to the wine. Admirable elegant, linear and profound this Swiss Chardonnay. No hurry, good years ahead.

95/100

Cheers,
Martin

Thanks for sharing that, Martin.Sounds like an amazing wine. I wish we could find Swiss wines more often in the USofA.
Tom

Jozef.P · October 2, 2019, 1:20pm

To be clear, Swiss wines are also not easy to track down in Europe either…

Martin_Zwick · October 2, 2019, 1:30pm

YES

Over the years ALL relative wine-regions presented regularly their wines in Berlin, but not Switzerland. Really puzzling!

Also it is quite difficult to catch Swiss wines in Germany, especially the red wines. It looks like the Swiss love to drink their wines for themselves.

Laurent_Gibet · October 2, 2019, 3:42pm

Thanky you for this note …

I only tasted Gantenbein once in 2005, with some disappointment (I must try again) :

Suisse – Martha et Daniel Gantenbein - Pinot Noir 2002 : report by Pascal Perez
JP14 – PP14,5 – LG13,5
Le domaine se situe non loin de la frontière avec le Lichtenstein.
Nez proposant de la fraise, de la cerise (et son noyau), des épices (girofle, poivre), mais manquant d’éclat.
Douceur de caramel au lait et glissant signent sa bouche. Elle est toutefois trop marquée par un élevage vanillé superficiel. De la réglisse et une finale chaleureuse aussi. Une déception eu égard au niveau annoncé pour les vins de ce domaine culte.

MChang · October 2, 2019, 6:20pm

I read that Switzerland has very high wine consumption and very little production so little leaves the country. Wine house in la has a bit of it.

Jonathan_Favre · October 2, 2019, 8:10pm

Thx for the note Martin. Would love to try this Chardonnay from any vintage someday! I have some of the '07 Pinot which has and is drinking beautifully. CHEERS

Dan_Kravitz · October 2, 2019, 11:13pm

I was treated to a range of fine Swiss wines during a visit to Bern a few years ago. I would love to try this Chardonnay.

I believe the reason Swiss wines are so expensive is that the Swiss Winegrowers Federation (or whatever its official name) is a powerful political force in the country. To gain their votes, the government imposes minimum pricing and buys surplus to keep that pricing intact. Combined with low production, high consumption and an extremely strong currency, it makes export a daunting proposition for growers. Switzerland imports quite a bit of wine, but this is also regulated; they obviously import more red than white, but I think there are quantity limits as well as the taxes you would expect.

Dan Kravitz

Martin_Zwick · October 3, 2019, 6:16am

Good to hear, Jonathan. The Gantenbein Pinot is even more famous.

Otto_Forsberg · October 3, 2019, 5:00pm

I do agree that Gantenbein Chardonnay is pretty extraordinary for a Chardonnay almost no-one has ever heard of. I had the vintage 2014 a year ago, it was quite something.

2014 Gantenbein Chardonnay - Switzerland, Eastern Switzerland, Bündner Herrschaft, Fläsch (3.12.2018)
Gantenbein is considered one of the top wine producers in Switzerland. They farm only 6 hectares, of which 5 ha are for Pinot Noir and the rest (approx. 1 ha) is mainly for Chardonnay with a little bit of Riesling as well. The average annual production of this Chardonnay is only 200 cases. 14% alcohol.

Pale lemon yellow color. Very intense, complex and quite concentrated nose with pure aromas of ripe golden apples and nectarine, some creamy richness, a little bit of sweet white peach, light reductive notes of gunpowder smoke, a subtly caramel hint of oak, a touch of pineapple and a green whiff of sappy white fruit. The wine is medium-bodied, very lively and remarkably youthful on the palate with intense, concentrated flavors of ripe citrus fruits and fresh golden apples, steely minerality, some creamy richness, a little bit of sappy green-toned fruit, light star fruit notes, a hint of coconut and a touch of smoky reductive character. The acidity feels very high, which makes the wine feel remarkably fresh and light on its feet despite the concentration. The finish is fresh, crisp and mineral with flavors of tangy green apples, some key lime, a little bit of creamy richness, light sweeter notes of ripe citrus fruits, a hint of toasty oak spice and a touch of sappy white fruit.

A remarkably balanced, intense and almost nervous Chardonnay that feels all too youthful at this point. I’ve seen Gantenbein Chardonnay likened a few times to Chablis wines that are built like white Grand Cru Burgundies from Côte d’Or, and now - having tasted the wine - I must say that it is an apt comparison. The wine shows the bright minerality, intense green-toned fruit and even smoky reductive one might associate with a Chablis, but the rich, creamy undertones, power and concentration are something one would look for in a Grand Cru Burgundy; this spectacular white manages to combine those characteristics seamlessly into one. The only thing this wine is lacking is age - even at 4 years of age the wine feels all too young and most likely it will require much longer than a decade before it hits its apogee. However, I must say that despite its impressive qualities I still feel that the wine is just too darn expensive at 200 CHF (~185€). (94 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

Martin_Zwick · October 4, 2019, 2:24am

I do agree that Gantenbein Chardonnay is pretty extraordinary for a Chardonnay almost no-one has ever heard of. I had the vintage 2014 a year ago, it was quite something.

2014 Gantenbein Chardonnay - Switzerland, Eastern Switzerland, Bündner Herrschaft, Fläsch (3.12.2018)
Gantenbein is considered one of the top wine producers in Switzerland. They farm only 6 hectares, of which 5 ha are for Pinot Noir and the rest (approx. 1 ha) is mainly for Chardonnay with a little bit of Riesling as well. The average annual production of this Chardonnay is only 200 cases. 14% alcohol.

Pale lemon yellow color. Very intense, complex and quite concentrated nose with pure aromas of ripe golden apples and nectarine, some creamy richness, a little bit of sweet white peach, light reductive notes of gunpowder smoke, a subtly caramel hint of oak, a touch of pineapple and a green whiff of sappy white fruit. The wine is medium-bodied, very lively and remarkably youthful on the palate with intense, concentrated flavors of ripe citrus fruits and fresh golden apples, steely minerality, some creamy richness, a little bit of sappy green-toned fruit, light star fruit notes, a hint of coconut and a touch of smoky reductive character. The acidity feels very high, which makes the wine feel remarkably fresh and light on its feet despite the concentration. The finish is fresh, crisp and mineral with flavors of tangy green apples, some key lime, a little bit of creamy richness, light sweeter notes of ripe citrus fruits, a hint of toasty oak spice and a touch of sappy white fruit.

A remarkably balanced, intense and almost nervous Chardonnay that feels all too youthful at this point. I’ve seen Gantenbein Chardonnay likened a few times to Chablis wines that are built like white Grand Cru Burgundies from Côte d’Or, and now - having tasted the wine - I must say that it is an apt comparison. The wine shows the bright minerality, intense green-toned fruit and even smoky reductive one might associate with a Chablis, but the rich, creamy undertones, power and concentration are something one would look for in a Grand Cru Burgundy; this spectacular white manages to combine those characteristics seamlessly into one. The only thing this wine is lacking is age - even at 4 years of age the wine feels all too young and most likely it will require much longer than a decade before it hits its apogee. However, I must say that despite its impressive qualities I still feel that the wine is just too darn expensive at 200 CHF (~185€). (94 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

Thank you for your TN. According to a Gantenbein-expert 2014 is one of the best Chardonnay vintages, if no the best, for Gantenbein so far.

Martin_Zwick · October 4, 2019, 12:27pm

Here a photo of the cork.

Robert_Sand · October 6, 2019, 9:12am

Gantenbein is really excellent, both the Pinot noir and the Chardonnay. The latter is even more expensive with 140 €.
However they are not easy to find, most is drunk in Switzerland itself, and seriously for that money or less I know quite a lot of other Burgundies I do prefer. But nothing against trying a bottle now and then.