Kissinger is still my favourite German Chardonnay as well. If you like Jura, you will like Kissinger.
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According to Vinum Weinguide Deutschland 2024, the best Chardonnays are as follows:
- 2021 Malterdinger Bienenberg Chardonnay GG, Bernhard Huber (Baden)
- 2021 Chardonnay Alte Reben, Bernhard Huber (Baden)
- 2021 Chardonnay R, Rudolf FĆ¼rst (Franken)
Other award winners:
- 2021 Staufener Schlossberg Chardonnay, Fritz WaĆmer (Baden)
- 2021 Chardonnay R, Giegerich (Franken)
- 2021 Chardonnay Imperiale, von Winning (Pfalz)
- 2022 Chardonnay Abyssus, Metzger (Pfalz)
- 2021 Achkarrer Schlossberg Chardonnay GG, Michel (Baden)
- 2022 Sulzfelder Sonnenberg Chardonnay GG, Luckert (Franken)
- 2021 Schelinger Kirchberg Chardonnay Reserve, SchƤtzle (Baden)
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So many Chardonnays from 2021ā¦ I would never thought that such a cold and cloudy vintage would result in some of Germanyās best wines!?
I should expect that the chardonnays from 2023 will eclipse those from 2021, but we shall see!
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I really need to get my hands on some Huber chards! And very cool to see three Franken wines on that list.
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Seeing SaalwƤchter dropping at some usual places I shop, Iām very much considering pulling the trigger. Anyone have some experience with them? I especially see the Chardonnay Reserve getting high praise.
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They polarize. Some like them much more than others. Try some to find out to which camp you belong!
Curious what people donāt like and what they do like about them? And is it the full lineup or just certain grapes.
I know in NYC the Weiss and Silvaners are a big hit with Burgundy drinkers.
I really liked the 2021 base Chardonnay. It needed some air to find its balance, but then it was also really good. Tasted it over three days and it kept improving.
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I cannot speak for the ālikeā team. There was a bit of a hype after they hit the market (2019?) and I got about a dozen of Chardonnays and Pinots. The only one I unconditionally enjoyed was the Fruehburgunder, unpretentious and crispy. Chardonnays too sweet and yeasty for my taste, Pinots too bland. Grauburgunder tasted in the shop was unpleasantly bitter. I must still have some somewhere, maybe they improved with age. The reactions in my circle were similar. I didnāt have more recent vintages
For what it is worth the higher end bottlings are a very big step up in quality and he has gotten much better every year. Full disclaimer we sell some through source | material.
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I will try to get a mixed pack if anything. His entire lineup seems a bit richer in expression from the tasting notes Iāve read? Iāve had a Sylvaner by Vetter previously, but I felt it was a bit too simple and one-dimensional to pique my interest.
Iāve tasted the 2020 SchƤfer-Frƶhlich Bockenauer Chardonnay āRā Trocken twice - first at a tasting organised by Howard Ripley in London, then a full bottle at home (and I have another bottle that Iāll lose in the cellar for a few years).
My note:
28/06/2024 - I like this wine: 91 points
Perhaps unsurprisingly a lot less reductive and in your face than when I tried it in spring 2023, but thereās still a lovely brightness to this wine. An element of vanilla and reduction on the nose, power without weight, delicious grapefruit through the midpalate and then pineapple on the finish. Lovely wine.
It was quite a unique rendition, with plenty of the producerās style showing (which is a good thing in my book as I love their Rieslings).
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Thanks for the great / informative note.
Totally agree on the Dostert. I took a zero-knowledge chance with the '19 that Source Material offered and loved them. Looking forward to the sparkling.
The Thorle '20 was insane good. Sadly, I only got two bottles from Lyle and I donāt think he has offered it again.
Loved the Keller (and might have posted it here, but was likely too lazy.)
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On my trip to Germany in April, Chardonnay was the biggest surprise. It takes a lot for me to be distracted from Riesling, but boy, the Chardonnays kept pulling me in. Hereās a list of the ones I found the most fascinating:
I have a bottle of Jonas Dostertās Chardonnay staring at me from my wine rackā¦yet to taste that one!
Here are a few of my notes:
Weingut Seckinger (Pfalz, Niederkirchen bei Deidesheim):
I hope we see more of these wines in the US. They hit the sweet spot for me across the board. These brothers are hitting everything out of the parkāthe wines are delicious, memorable, and (dare I say it) transformative. Get these before the prices skyrocket.
Chardonnay āPureā 2022 - From grapes in Ruppertsberg. This wine tastes absolutely like a De Moor in the Pfalz. Light, ethereal, almost-oxidative fruit yellow apple and meyer lemon fruit, bright but with with soft edges. (They displayed empty bottles of De Moor on a shelf inside their tasting area.)
Chardonnay Linse 2022: Also Ruppertsberg fruit. More traditional then the Pure. Ultra vibrant, still very young, bright yellow intense yellow plum and lemon fruit with great acid, but not harsh. Needs a bit of time, but wow.
Chardonnay Maikammer Kapellenberg 2022: Wowza. From a single limestone vineyard further south in the Pfalz. This sunny, bright, energetic yellow chard had a floral, blanched almond, lemon zest, and Shiro plum flesh thing going on. Giving me Puligny vibes. Super young, but what a stunner, especially for the price. The new oak was barely perceptible to me, an oak-averse person.
Weingut Sander (Rheinhessen, Mettenheim):
One of the earliest organically farmed estates in Germany (according to them). A classic-yet-innovative lineup of wines including some resurrected old grape varieties. Their Chardonnays were standouts to me.
Chardonnay Amphorae 2022: Mascerated on skins for 36 hours and then went into an amphora for 36 months. Delicious, soft-edged, but mineral-driven Chardonnay. Bright fruit with good structure but delicious enough to enjoy right away.
Chardonnay Reserve 2022: From vines planted in 1955 at the Metternheimer Schlossberg vineyard up the hill from the winery. fermented in tonneaus a amphora. A more intense, yet mineral and textural, Chardonnay. Not nearly as fruit-driven as the Seckinger bottlesāa touch of apple and pear with deep brooding tones. More Chassagne than Puligny, if I have to compare.
Weingut Arndt F. Werner (Rheinhessen, Ingelheim):
An understated 8th-generation estate thatās farmed organically for more than 40 years. Charming and humble, Thomas Wernerās wines are the picture of balance, restraint, and getting out of the way of the terroir. I think Ingelheim is wildly underrated. As usual, their prices are so low. (Donāt miss their FrĆ¼hburgunder!)
Ingelheimer Chardonnay trocken 2022: Wild value at Ā£13. Absurd. Crystalline, yellow apple, plum, lime, mineral. No noticeable oak but no harsh corners: bright acid, yet medium body. Will convert any Chard-ophobe.
Weingut Weinreich (Rheinhessen, Bechteim)
This winery does it all, from traditional, mineral-driven single-vineyard Riesling to one of the best Sekt I tasted. Weinreich also makes a series of absolutely energetic, value-driven ānaturalā wines. And by ānatural,ā I donāt mean stinky or flawed. Just wines with some skin contact, low sulfur, and interesting-fun combinations of grapes.
Des Wahnsinns Fette Beute (100% Chardonnay) 2022: All of their ānaturalā line are sublimely scrumptious, especially this Chardonnay. Hazy, with a hint of tannin, juicy plum skin, lemon verbena, minty thing going on, great juicy acid yet the body of a Chardonnay. I would love to see this imported to the States. At Ā£15 from the winery, itās a steal.
Weingut BĆ¼rgermeister Carl-Koch (Rheinhessen, Oppenheim)
A wacky yet magical winery with a huge array of wines all below Ā£25.
Chardonnay āOff-Pisteā 2023: This wine comes from their funky ānaturalā lineup and is fermented and aged in Tonneau und StĆ¼ckfass. A bit less squeaky clean compared to the Weinreich, but deeply delicious. Cloudy lemon-yellow, with a mixture of bright herbal (lemon thyme, maybe?) and juicy pithy aromas and flavors. Great acidity yet enough body to make it a pleasure to drink when you want something a bit girthier than Riesling. Again, a fantastic value for an interesting and delicious drink at Ā£15.
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@MartinS Welcome! Incredible first post! Thank you. I tasted with Seckinger last week and was extremely impressed
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Amazing post! You had me at De Moor in Pfalz 
Need to source some.
Thank you, Robert & Lasse! Iām already scheming about my next trip back to the Pfalz to see the Seckingers.
Already ordered a mixed batch of Seckinger 
.
They even make a Savagnin!
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And itās spot on. I toted a bottle of that back with me.
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