I must admit that when I started with Christoph Walter, I did not necessarily think that his wines would get the overwhelming reaction that they have among the list. Yes, he's one of the top makers of pinot noir in Germany. Yes, he has stunning terroir with vineyards in Centgrafenberg and Hunstruck. Yes, he releases late and the wines are properly aged. But he's such a modest, almost bashful guy that I never thought of him becoming the next rock star at Fass Selections. Of course, this makes no sense as no one on the list has ever met him and only likes him because of the quality of his wines, but I think that this was my subconscious bias.
Suffice it to say, I was pleasantly surprised with the massive fan love that the wines have gotten. Everyone seems to see in them what I see. These wines are amazingly fresh regardless of vintage or age, and they are ridiculous values. Maybe the best aged red wine values we offer. There are very few wines that I anticipate opening more than Christoph's wines. Every one is beautiful and special. He really reminds me of a red Martin Muellen. The wines have that "je ne sais quoi" that makes them special.
Up first is the 2012 Josef Walter Pinot Noir Centgrafenberg for $37.99 on a 4-pack. This is one of the best wines I have ever had from Christoph. It's ridiculous. The nose is super deep. Just an amazing nose. So much stuff going on. There is deep vivid berry fruit as well as tea and a hint of coffee. So nuanced and deep. You can smell for minutes on end. A nose to get lost in as it is like a fractal. Endless complexity. The palate is silky and deep. Yet so rich and textured. The wine is deep, dense and ripe with awesome richness and an outrageous finish. The best sweet fruit I've had in a Walter wine. The energy of this wine is incredible. For those of you that have had the 09 Fruhburgunder this is as good if not better. Jump on this. Supply is limited. This is called Pinot Noir because it is a special and superior clone according to Christoph and he eventually wants this clone to be in all of his vineyards. It will be a long process I suspect but for now we have this one wine from this superior clone and that is enough to be thankful for.
Up next is an even older wine, the just released 2010 Josef Walter Spatburgunder Centgrafenberg "J" for $39.99 a bottle on a 4-pack. This is just below Hundsruck in the quality hierarchy at Walter. The "J" is the indicator for that. This is just another epic wine from one of the most monumental vintages for Spatburgunder in all of Germany. The only comparison I can make is Burgundy. It's like '96 in Burgundy but with way better ripeness and killer acids that ensure these will live a very long time. Huge nose. Panoply of spice, bowl of dark cherries. Hints of tea. Very concentrated and powerful. Gorgeous sweet fruit, refined and elegant tannins. Huge acid (it is 2010, after all with a long and elegant finish and that acid again on the deep backend. Insane freshness and purity on the very, very long finish. It's just a masterpiece in a different way from the previous wine. It's also something I see lasting for 15-20 more years. No joke.
For those of you who do not know, I was introduced to Christoph by my good friend Sebastian Furst, who is considered by many to be one of the top 2 makers of red wine in Germany (along with Ziereisen). Sebastian does not make recommendations lightly and I am certainly in his debt for this particular introduction. Sebastian works the vineyards alongside Christoph and they have a similar style. Sebastian's wines are over $100 and worth every penny which should give you an idea of the kind of value that Christoph's wines are.
2012 Josef Walter Pinot Noir Centgrafenberg - $39.99 ($151.96 4-pack)
2010 Josef Walter Spatburgunder Centgrafenberg "J" - $41.99 ($159.96)
No comments:
Post a Comment