Jaspis Grauer Burgunder Alte Reben
- One of the Best Non-Chardonnay Wines In the World
- 58 Year Old Vines, Top Vineyard Site
- 2013 Got 94 Points
Jaspis Pinot Noir
- Like a Cross of Vosne and Chambolle
- Elegant but with Insane Earthiness and Fruit
- a Unique Expression of Pinot Noir
- from One of Europe's Top Winemakers
Ziereisen Is a Do Not Miss Winemaker - Only I Carry His Top Wines in the States
I was out to dinner with The Greek's son in late December and I brought a bottle of the 2013 Ziereisen Grauer burgunder Jaspis Alte Reben. He brought 2009 Francois Raveneau 1er Cru "Butteaux." The Grauer Burgunder was $49.99 and the Raveneau was $175 a bottle. By now I'm sure you all know where this story is going. The Ziereisen absolutely ate that Raveneau for breakfast. It was not even a fair fight. The Ziereisen was an eye-opening wine that night and the fact that it went with the food better than the Raveneau and also showed up the more expensive sexy label-chasing wine was all the more satisfying.
Hanspeter Zieriesen is a genius. Ziereisen is a top 10 estate in Germany and easily my most versatile estate. I find myself reaching for Ziereisen wines more often than not. He has the Midas touch and now with his brand new winery (all one big cellar with a homogenous temperature for nice long elevage) he is pushing himself even harder. I can't think of many wineries that excel with so many different grapes at the different quality levels he does. Today I bring you the top level Grauer burgunder and the right below top level Pinot Noir. Both from the brilliant 2014 vintage in the Markgraferland. I am in a bind as one thing I do not want to happen with this email is that it suffers from "1st wine-itis" in that the first wine gets all the praise and orders while the second one does well but not as well because it's not first. I hate that. Both of these wines are important and should lead the offer but alas one will come first and one will come second. I have to offer these now as they sell out in Germany on release as the Germans know what's up. Especially with all the buzz about the brilliant 2014 vintage here. Crisp, direct and straight wines with cleansing and wonderful acids. Perfect for Pinot Noir and even more importantly Pinot Gris, aka, Grauburgunder.
Up first is the 2014 Zieriesen Jaspis Pinot Noir for as little as $45.99 on a 3-pack. The 2013 got 93 pts from Stephan Rheinhardt of the Wine Advocate and the 2014 is even better. Another level better. I'm the only one you can get the Jaspis bottlings from as they become prohibitively expensive through the 3-Tier system. These are some of the best wines in Germany. The Pinots are perhaps the most successful "Burgundian but oh so German" Pinot Noirs being made in Germany today. The key is despite being Burgundian these are definitely engineered in Germany. They are authoritative, clear and ultra precise expressions of Pinot Noir. It is unmistakably German but can easily harken back to Burgundy if one needs to be grounded and cling to some familiarity. Comparing German Pinot Noir to Burgundy is a bit like riding your bike with training wheels. They are absolutely necessary in the beginning stages but then they come off and you don't go back. I do not like comparing German Pinot Noir to Burgundy but it's a young category and everyone has their training wheels on. I hope in 3-4-5 years to stop comparing them to Burgundy and speak about the differing terroir and compare them to each other (when there are more high quality producers) rather than to the old tried and true Burgundy. Having said that the 2014 Jaspis is a lot like a lighter Vosne or more firm Chambolle. The soils are Jurassic chalk and this is from 50 yr old vines. They only make 2,000 or so bottles a year. Just a crazy nose. Very fresh and deeper and earthier than the previous two wines (Schulen and Tschuppsen). Cranberry and dense cherries dominate the nose but all so delicate, detailed and so pure. Elegant wine with ridiculous levels of sweet fruit. A massive wine with a silken structure. The old vines give this so much more earthiness than the Schulen or Tschuppsen. Ripe morello cherries and darker fruits spread out on your palate like a fractal. Inner mouth aromas are insane on this. It finishes so elegant, with such intense fruit and just explosive purity. Such stunning richness and depth. This is almost a perfect wine. What a finish. It never ends and is so balanced. The dissipation is profound. This is just gorgeous. Goes on an on and will age at least 20 years. So long and delineated and dazzling purity. Stunning fruit that is crazy vivid and pure. Wow. Truly a wow wine and don't miss. This is super limited. Below is the review of the '13 that got 93 from Rheinhardt.
"Noble, ripe and elegant with a polished, perfectly balanced, dark and spicy, concentrated fruit bouquet opens the 2013 Pinot Noir Jaspis; the wine shows the natural richness of a great Pinot. Full-bodied, pure, highly elegant and velvety in its texture, this is a voluminous, vital and tension-filled wine with great finesse, expression and tension. There is a stimulating salinity and freshness in the lovely, firm, bone dry and almost austere finish that makes this young, finely juicy Pinot from 50-year-old vines on jurassic chalk soils an exceptional Spätburgunder from Baden." 93 Points, Stephan Reinhardt The Wine Advocate (2013)
So why am I offering a $48 pinot gris (2014 Ziereisen Grauer Burgunder Alte Reben for $47.99 on a 3-bottle pack)? Because it's made from the best vineyards from one of the best winemakers in Europe and from 58 year old vines. This is a Grand Cru/Grosses Gewachs quality wine. But it's even more. It is a wine that will change the way you think about Pinot Gris. It is also one of the greatest food wines in the world. The nose is just stunningly elegant. It has fruit complexity with the best of them. Stunning nuanced stone fruits all over this nose. Citrus. Really something you can get lost in with mineral and light citrus overtones combined with it opening and opening. The palate is where the fireworks really happen. A rare wine where the palate over delivers what the nose promises. This is one of the most explosive wines I've ever had from Germany. Huge, and I mean huge acidity combined with delicious juicy stone fruits. A massive fruit soak and such insane fruit complexity again. I know I don't talk often about fruit complexity but this is exhibit A. When you recover from that, there are incredible internal aromatics floating above with a firm mineral core. The wine is completely delicious (my tasting note says, "WOW, YUM") but this wine also has some serious eye-popping complexity. I had this on a pop and pour at the estate and it was amazing but then over a four hour meal where it truly blew my mind - it will get better with some serious air or bottle age. I'd open and follow over the course of an evening - this is a special, special wine from a remarkable producer. It also got 94 from Stephane Reinhardt for the 13. His review is below.
"The 2013 Grauer Burgunder Alte Reben Jaspis is a selection from two parcels; the vines were planted in 1958 and 1962 on Jurassic chalk soils with an iron-rich layer of clay. The wine has an apricot color and an intense, aromatic bouquet of ripe (stone) fruits and some lovely lime flavors. The wine is creamy and elegant on the palate, but full of tension, power and intense, juicy fruit. The finish is very long and expresses the old vines. This has great purity, freshness and salinity in the finish. Great aging potential. This is a fascinating Pinot Gris for the next 8-10 years." 94 Points, Stephan Reinhardt The Wine Advocate (2013)
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