After an underwhelming 2021 I gave this another chance. Green and stemmy on day 1, set aside and forgotten for a week. Vastly improved after that, the wine filled out with floral notes. Medium acidity, medium tannins, medium everything. Still not a fan.
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One of the best reds I had last year - and that includes plenty of blue-chip Burgundy… I was blown away =)
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That’s interesting, as I had a bottle tonight and I quite liked it. I guess one’s green and stemmy is another’s lightning in a bottle! It was unlike any other Pinot Noirs I’ve had before, and for lack of better words it truly made me think of a red Riesling. Not everyone at the table was convinced though, so I can see what you mean.
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Finally catching up on some Spatburgunders I tried in the last few weeks. Apologies for the quick notes from memory. All of these were great.
2022 Kilburg Ohligsberg Pinot Noir
Lightning in a glass! Truly the closest thing to red Riesling I’ve ever tasted.
2022 Sven Enderle Pinot Noir
A bit ripe and full on PnP, still quite tasty. On day 2 it underwent an incredible transformation and it became energetic, focused, and captivating. Very optimistic about this!
2022 Lardot Pinot Noir
At Spencer in Ann Arbor. Vibrant, hint of natty, super food friendly. Puts a smile on your face.
2022 Daniel Fries Terrassen Pinot Noir
Ripe fruit, some tannins on PnP but it quickly opened up. Delicious and ready to go. The bottle vanished in no time. A producer to follow.
And a “Spatburgunder-adjacent”: 2023 Laisse Tomber Hautes-Côtes de Beaune
BTG at Agriturismo Ferdy. Very very pretty, almost ethereal. Captivating on its own but it didn’t stand up to almost any food.
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Thank you Luca for the fantastic notes on some of my favorite producers! source | material sells a few of those.
Achim Durr 2020 Wolfhag Pinot Noir
First impression wasn’t the last, as this started off with a nearly overwhelming amount of sour cherry. After some air, this really evolved really well. baking spice and floral on the nose. Mouthwatering acidity, tension.
Gives a clear sense for precise and deliberate winemaking.
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Another great under-the-radar Spätburgunder producer. Thanks for the note.
Fizzy white.
2017 Clemens Busch Sekt 2017
Recent purchase. Sour fruits, crisp (just) underripe apricot. Fun mousse, easy lean style. €27.
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Don’t think I have ever seen that wine. I did talk to Clemens about his original attempt at making Pinot and he was not with the results, so he now puts the grapes in the Sekt.
Well I guess he’s been doing that a while as this is 8 years old.
Most people outsource their Sekt as far as I know - sending the must or first fermented wine in bulk. No idea if this is the case here.
Yeah this was awhile ok that the tried his hand at Pinot. Looks like there are notes from a 2011 and 2012 on cellartracker
Needed some “rosé” for the summer heat… 
It is drinking very well now and disappears way too easy.
I think it has evolved better than I’ve expected. Lovely stemmy spicy notes with fragile red sweet berries.
If your on the edge with Wasenhaus style, then stay away from the 2021’s though.
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Not a great showing from 2020 Roter Berg Rose, perhaps kept it too long, a bit or orange peel and light berries. Still fresh but too neutral.
(We sell Lukas’ wines. Not this one).
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Can’t quite figure out the Roses. A few have been otherworldly and a few as you describe. Every thing else has been absolutely great.
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I have 1 bottle left of the lukas’ 21 rose, i loved the first bottle i had ~18 months ago so maybe I should drink up sooner rather than later. Is there a lot of bottle variation or vintage variation?
I checked and the 2020 Spätburgunder Roter Berg was absolutely stunning in December 2022. It was more light a lighter Red.
22 Roter Berg was quite disappointing at the weekend. Too much VA and too much funk for me - which would have been more tolerable if there was a bit more pep under that, but I found it rather flat. I did not finish the bottle.
This, on the other hand, from the same order, was great:
Somewhere between Wasenhaus Ordinaire and their standard Spatburgunder. Really fresh, moreish, clean red fruit. I bought six more!
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Picked on the winelist of a new German/Austrian restaurant in Copenhagen.
I really like Makalié. I think they always manage to hit a sweet fruity natural vibe mixed with a proper freshness from the acidity and low abv (this was 12%). Never had a faulty bottle and they seem to age well. Very happy that I own a few of these myself.
Everyone at the table was very happy with it.
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Wine aside, with Copenhagen being one of the trendier capitals + restaurant ahead, also a further positive sign for German (and Austrian) wines?
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